This Congressman-Elect Is Living the Dream and Taking His Oath on a Superman Comic
Not all heroes wear capes.
With the 2022 midterm elections, the Republican party took control of the House of Representatives. Even though the new Congress just began, the GOP is already letting chaos reign because the party of self-interest cannot rally behind a single candidate for Speaker of the House. But not everything is dismal in the House of Representatives right now.
When a new speaker is finally chosen, newly elected members of congress can finally be sworn in. Right now, all the new members are watching the GOP’s dumpster fire from the front row while they wait patiently to actually get some work done. Robert Garcia, a progressive Democrat from California, is looking forward to his time in office and has announced he will forgo the customary Bible for his oath of office. Instead, he will represent all of us comic book nerds by swearing in over—in addition to the U.S. Constitution, of course—a copy of Superman #1.
Superman #1 is a holy book.
Robert Garcia has long proclaimed his love of comic books and Superman in particular. In 2021, he tweeted his support of Superman’s son Jon Kent coming out the comic books. He said, “I became a Superman fan as a kid because I related to him. An immigrant, a sense of justice, and a secret identity. His son, Jon Kent is coming out in the comics. I’m proud of @DCComics & @TomTaylorMade for giving young LGBTQ+ people a hero of their own.”
On January 3rd, Garcia tweeted his plan to be sworn in “to Congress on the U.S. Constitution. Underneath the Constitution will be 3 items that mean a lot to me personally. A photo of my parents who I lost to covid, my citizenship certificate & an original Superman #1″ from the library of Congress.
As a lifelong comic nerd, firm believer in the separation of church and state, and follower of a religion without a holy text, I couldn’t be happier with Garcia’s choices. His picks show his commitment to the country and his personal beliefs. It also underscores how important comic books are to our culture. Published in 1939, Superman #1 is still making history. It was part of the Golden Age of comics and was the beginning of the comic book hero heyday we are in now. Superheroes represent the best of us and inspire us to do better, just like good leaders should.
(featured image: DC Comics)
This article has been updated with a correction regarding the title of the comic book specified.
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