C-SPAN cameras to return to House chamber in January
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House Speaker Mike Johnson inside the House chamber on March 7, 2024. Photo: Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Image.
C-SPAN cameras will once again be allowed to roll from inside the House chamber when lawmakers return in January to elect a speaker and certify the 2024 presidential election.
Why it matters: C-SPAN's special access during the protracted speaker election in 2023 gave the American public a rare glimpse into the House's usually hidden machinations.
- The high level of public engagement with that behind-the-scenes access led to a push to allow the independent news organization to be granted permanent permission to freely film the inside of the chamber.
- That push was unsuccessful, though then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's (R-Calif.) did reportedly expand the access of the government-run cameras in the chamber.
State of play: The cameras are always allowed on Jan. 3 because speaker elections occur before a vote can take place to pass a House rules package explicitly barring them from the chamber.
- But House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.) office also plans to allow the cameras on Jan. 6, when lawmakers meet to certify President-elect Trump's victory, a Johnson spokesperson told Axios.
- The cameras are typically only allowed in special circumstances such as State of the Union addresses.
- A C-SPAN spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Zoom in: Jan. 3 could see a repeat of the drama that arose out of McCarthy's four-day, 15-ballot slog in 2023 as numerous right-wing House Republicans refused to commit to voting for Johnson.
- With a likely 219-215 majority, Johnson will only be able to lose one vote, and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has said he plans to vote against the incumbent speaker.
- Jan. 6 is on track to be a more staid affair, with Democratic lawmakers telling Axios that their members are not expected to try to object to Trump's elector slates.
Zoom out: The extended 2023 speaker election spawned numerous viral moments.
- Viewers saw chatter between unlikely conversation partners, such as Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.).
- They also got to witness the anger that bubbled up from the protracted battle with House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) at one point appearing to lunge at now-former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.).
