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Vermont congressional delegation attends Trump swearing in

A woman and two men stand in a line
Lisa Rathke
/
Associated Press
Becca Balint, left, then a Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, stands with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), center, and Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), on Oct. 22, 2022, at a campaign rally in Barre.

Vermont's entire Congressional delegation attended President Donald Trump's swearing in ceremony on Monday.

Several Democratic members of congress and other dignitaries skipped the ceremony. But U.S. senators Peter Welch and Bernie Sanders and U.S. Rep. Becca Balint were in attendance.

In a prepared statement, Balint said "supporting our democracy means we don’t only attend the peaceful transfer of power when our candidate wins."

"As we move forward into a critical time in our nation’s history, I’m choosing calm," Balint said. "Not because I’m blind to the dangers we face, but because this moment requires calm, focus and a clarity of purpose. As we heard outlined today, there is so much at stake, we can’t afford to get distracted or lose focus. Our very democracy is on the line."

Welch offered congratulations to Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance.

"My job is to do the best I can to help Vermonters, and I’ll continue to do that," Welch said in prepared remarks. "We are witnessing today the peaceful transfer of power."

Sanders' office said he "believes that the peaceful transition of power is the bedrock of American democracy and — no matter how strongly and profoundly he disagrees with President Trump on the important issues facing our country — it should be respected."

Mark Davis has spent more than a decade working as a reporter in Vermont, focusing on both daily and long-form stories. Prior joining Vermont Public as assistant news director, he worked for five years at Seven Days, the alt-weekly in Burlington, where he won national awards for his criminal justice reporting. Before that, he spent nine years at the Valley News, where he won state and national awards for his coverage of the criminal justice system, Topical Storm Irene, and other topics. He has also served as a producer and editor for the Rumblestrip podcast. He graduated from the University of Maryland's Philip Merrill College of Journalism.
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