114th Congress - THE RIDGEWOOD BLOG.

Rep.-elect Mia Love (Utah)

Most diverse Congress in history with the largest black Republican class in Congress since the Reconstruction era
By Peter Sullivan – 01/05/15 05:35 PM EST

A wave of new lawmakers is arriving on Capitol Hill, with the most diverse Congress ever set to take power.

Republicans swell the ranks following their midterm gains, but there is more to members than just party affiliation. In that spirit, The Hill took a look at the composition, attributes and quirks of the voting members in the new 114th Congress.

There is a record number of female lawmakers at 104, alongside 430 men, following the departure of former Rep. Michael Grimm (R-N.Y.).

Rep.-elect Mia Love (Utah) is making history as the first black Republican woman in Congress. Love, fellow Rep.-elect Will Hurd (Texas) and Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.) also are part of the largest black Republican class in Congress since the Reconstruction era. There will be 46 black lawmakers in the new Congress.

Hispanic lawmakers will number 33, with 30 in the House and three senators. Twelve Asian-Americans will also serve, with 11 in the House and Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) in the upper chamber. There are two lawmakers of Native American ancestry, both from Oklahoma, Reps. Tom Cole (R) and Markwayne Mullin (R).

Lawmakers have an average age of 57. The Senate is older than the House, with an average age of 61 to the lower chamber’s 57. Democrats on average are older than Republicans in both chambers, at 62 to 60 in the Senate and 59 to 54 in the House.

https://thehill.com/homenews/news/228534-114th-congress-by-the-numbers

Scott Garrett U.S. Representative for New Jersey’s 5th congressional district, senior member of the House Budget Committee

Republicans take the reins in Congress with Commanding Majorities

By Alexander Bolton – 01/05/15 06:00 AM EST

It’s game time for Mitch McConnell and John Boehner.

For the first time since 2006, Congress is convening this week under full GOP control, with McConnell (Ky.) reaching the pinnacle of Senate majority leader and Boehner (Ohio) poised to win a third term as Speaker.

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With a 54-46 majority in the Senate, and an expanded majority in the House, Republicans are under pressure to deliver on their promises and move a raft of legislation to President Obama’s desk in the first few months of the year.

But in order to achieve that goal, McConnell and Boehner will need to unify their troops around a shared agenda — a task that will begin in earnest later this month, when House and Senate Republicans will hold a joint retreat in Hershey, Pa., to prepare for what one GOP aide described as the “frictions that will inevitably arise.”

Right off the bat, Boehner will have to deal with the political fallout from the revelation that House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) spoke to a white supremacist group in 2002, which has cast a cloud over the new session. The Chicago Tribune and conservative commentator Charles Krauthammer have called on Scalise, the No. 3 ranking House Republican, to step down.

Boehner has stood behind Scalise, putting his clout on the line ahead of Tuesday’s vote for Speaker. Defections are expected, but Boehner can afford to lose up to 28 Republicans before the Speaker vote would go to a second ballot.

Once the pageantry of Congress’s opening days is through, Republican leaders are hoping to get off to a fast start.

McConnell and Boehner, who consult weekly, set the tone after the midterm elections with an agenda that emphasizes jobs and the economy.

“That means a renewed effort to debate and vote on the many bills that passed the Republican-led House in recent years with bipartisan support, but were never even brought to a vote by the Democratic Senate majority,” Boehner and McConnell wrote in a joint op-ed in The Wall Street Journal.

The bicameral retreat, meanwhile, will give House and Senate Republicans an opportunity to coordinate their strategy for 114th Congress, which is likely to be dominated as time goes on by the politics of the 2016 presidential race.

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/228410-republicans-take-the-reins