For the third time in six years, Delegate to Congress Donna Christian Christensen was sworn in Wednesday as a member of the U.S. Congress.
Christensen joined 435 colleagues, including 41 new members of the House, in taking the oath of office for the 107th Congress. Republicans control the House by 221-211, with two independents evenly divided between the parties plus one vacancy.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to once again represent the people of the Virgin Islands in Washington. This is a critical time in our history because we will have our work cut out for us with the unique and challenging issues confronting the Virgin Islands," Christensen said.
Along with the Congressional swearing-in ceremony, Christensen joined her colleagues in the Congressional Black Caucus for a ceremonial CBC swearing-in earlier on Wednesday. The event was officiated by attorney Johnnie Cochran and featured Vice President Al Gore as the main speaker.
The CBC's new chair, Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson, urged her colleagues to remember the significance of the day for the ancestors who prayed for it, to the children who will look back on it.
Johnson laid out the Caucus's agenda for the 107th Congress, which will focus on education, economic development, and justice in other areas of life in America.
Christensen said that she is energized at the beginning of her third term in office and pledged to do her best as a representative of the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Meanwhile, both chambers of Congress will meet in joint session on Saturday for the ceremonial job of reading the electoral votes that made President-elect George W. Bush the next president. After that, the House will not be at work until early February. Some Senate committees will work through January on nominations, but little other work in that chamber is expected.
