The 119th Congress began on January 3, 2024, and it wasn’t without entertainment value. In the House, the focus was on the speaker vote, while in the Senate, Vice President Kamala Harris’s presence offered its own spectacle. Though most of the attention was drawn to the House drama, Kamala managed to win the prize of the most embarrassing moment with a gaffe that truly symbolized her political decline.
And that’s saying something. In the House, the speaker vote was far from smooth sailing. Speaker Mike Johnson faced what initially seemed to be an uphill battle when three Republicans broke ranks to vote for alternative candidates. However, after some apparent negotiations or last-minute changes of heart, two of the defectors switched their votes, handing Johnson a first-round victory.
While the speaker vote drama was embarrasing for the GOP, the intra-party squabble paled in comparison to the moment Kamala took center stage in the Senate.
Related: Mike Johnson Wins Reelection As House Speaker
Largely unseen since the election, Kamala came out of hiding on Friday because she was tasked with swearing in new senators. Her return to the Senate floor could have been an opportunity to reassert her relevance. Instead, it turned into a moment of public humiliation.
Her first job on Friday was the responsibility of leading the Pledge of Allegiance to open the new Senate term. It should have been a simple task but she fumbled, forgetting key parts of the Pledge, most notably the words “the flag.”
"I pledge alliegence to the United—" she began, before joining in with everyone else, who were saying the pledge correctly.
HOLY SMOKES.
— johnny maga (@_johnnymaga) January 3, 2025
Kamala just screwed up the pledge of allegiance on the Senate floor.
What an embarrassment to this country. pic.twitter.com/02NytVYKYV
As clips of her flubbed recitation circulated online, social media lit up with criticism and mockery. Critics highlighted the moment as yet another example of Harris’s perceived lack of preparedness and authenticity, while some outright questioned her competence.
Adding insult to injury, incoming Vice President JD Vance appeared to relish the moment, subtly trolling Kamala during the proceedings.
JD Vance seems giddy as he watches Kamala Harris swearing in new U.S. Senators. pic.twitter.com/xMjNmn51XL
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 3, 2025
It was a small but symbolic reminder of just how terrible Kamala is. She proved in both of her presidential campaigns that she is awful. Her failure to know the words to something any American first grader knows by heart is painfully on brand for a vice president whose legacy has been defined more by gaffes than achievements.
Recommended: Biden Returns From Vacation With Unexplained Injuries, Slurred Speech
The first day of the 119th Congress was supposed to mark a new chapter for the nation. Instead, it offered another reminder of why Kamala Harris’s political career ended with a humiliating billion-dollar defeat.
Thankfully, on January, we’ll all be unburned by what has been.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member