US Lawmaker Pramila Jayapal On Key Congressional Committee

Pramila Jayapal On Key Congressional Committee: US-based Indian-origin lawmaker, Pramila Jayapal has been named to the powerful congressional committee on budget by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Another Indian-origin lawmaker Raja Krishnamoorthi was appointed to the key committee on the coronavirus crisis on Tuesday. 

55-year-old Jayapal will play a significant role in the passage of the budget this year supporting Congressman John Yarmuth, who has been named to chair the House Budget Committee.

Congresswoman Jayapal is the first Indian-American woman to be elected to the US House of Representatives.

Jayapal was in the House chamber during the attack on Capitol Hill by former US President Donald Trump's supporters January 6. The rioters had reportedly broken into the Capitol Hill to overturn the 2020 election results, in which Joe Biden and Kamala Harris emerged victorious. The Democrat from Washington then accused Trump of spreading false narratives about the election, saying that he had "incited an insurrection on the United States Capitol." She tested positive for COVID-19 after the Capitol Hill attack.

I just received a positive COVID-19 test result after being locked down in a secured room at the Capitol where several Republicans not only cruelly refused to wear a mask but recklessly mocked colleagues and staff who offered them one.https://t.co/wVmgroKsdf

— Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) January 12, 2021

Speaking about her experience on January 6 in an episode of The Takeout podcast, Jayapal said she could not "articulate how close our democracy came to being overthrown."

"And we survived, but barely," she said of the assault which resulted in the deaths of five people, including a Capitol Hill Police officer. A protestor names Ashli Babbit reportedly died after being shot by the Capitol Police during the riot. "Only hours after Trump incited a deadly assault on our Capitol, many Republicans still refused to take the bare minimum COVID-19 precaution and simply wear a damn mask in a crowded room during a pandemic—creating a superspreader event ON TOP of a domestic terrorist attack," she had tweeted after the incident.

Jayapal has been the US Representative for Washington's 7th congressional district since 2017 and is currently leading the effort on USD 15 per hour as minimum wage.