GOP members of Inaugural Ceremonies committee block motion that described Biden as next president

The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies did not approve a motion on Tuesday that described Joe Biden as the nation's next president, failing to pass it in a 3-3 split vote due to opposition from the panel's three Republican members.

The motion stated: "I move that the committee notify the American people that we are preparing for the inauguration of the 46th President of the United States, Joseph R. Biden Jr., and his Vice President, Kamala Harris, in coordination with the Biden Presidential Inaugural Committee and public health experts to ensure the health and safety of the American people as we observe this transition of power."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) voted for the resolution while Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) voted against it.

“It is not the job of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies to get ahead of the electoral process and decide who we are inaugurating,” Blunt said in a statement. “The JCCIC is facing the challenge of planning safe Inaugural Ceremonies during a global pandemic. I would hope that, going forward, the members of the JCCIC would adhere to the committee’s long-standing tradition of bipartisan cooperation and focus on the task at hand.”

Rep. Hoyer criticized Republicans in a statement:

"The extent to which Republicans are refusing to accept the outcome of the election and recognize Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as our next President and Vice President is astounding," Hoyer said following the JCCIC meeting. "Their continued deference to President Trump's post-election temper tantrums threatens our democracy and undermines faith in our system of elections."

President Trump has not conceded to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election contest.