WASHINGTON — On the same day Nancy Pelosi became the first female speaker of the House, freshman Rep. Keith Ellison got almost as much attention.
The Minnesota Democrat, the first Muslim elected to Congress, used a Quran once owned by Thomas Jefferson rather than a Bible as he re-enacted his swearing-in with Pelosi.
The scene created a human traffic jam near the House floor. About 30 members of Ellison's extended family posed before about two dozen TV cameras, including one from the Arab network Al-Arabiya. James Billington, the librarian of Congress, walked the two-volume Quran, circa 1764, into the Capitol in a shoebox. Ellison's wife, Kim, held it.
Rep. Virgil Goode, R-Va., took exception last month to the 43-year-old Ellison's planned use of the Quran and said tougher immigration measures were needed to prevent the election of "many more Muslims." On Thursday, the two shook hands and agreed to have coffee.
"I congratulated him on being elected," Goode said, but added, "My concern is I do not want the United States to become a Muslim nation."
"I was glad to meet him," said Ellison, who was born in Detroit and converted to Islam. "The issue is, how can we knock down barriers of religion, color and culture?"
Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, helped engineer the meeting. "They're two good people," he said. "It's an opportunity for healing."
The day's events were enjoyed by Ellison's mother Clida, a Catholic who told the Associated Press she attends Mass daily, and sons Isaiah, Elijah and Jeremiah. Daughter Amirah was "jazzed," Ellison said, "because the speaker is a girl, too. That's what she said."