During the swearing-in ceremony, the husband of Nebraska Senator Deb Fischer notably avoided shaking hands with Vice President Kamala Harris. After Fischer took the oath of office while her husband, Bruce Fischer, held the Bible, the senator extended her hand to Harris, who then reached out to Bruce. Instead of reciprocating the handshake, Bruce Fischer simply nodded. Harris raised her eyebrows, then posed for a photo, where Bruce Fischer kept a composed expression. This open display of disregard appears to be a relatively new development. When Deb Fischer joined the Senate in 2013, Bruce Fischer shook hands and smiled when meeting then-Vice President Joe Biden.
Deb Fischer secured a third term in November following a particularly challenging race. During the primary, the Nebraska Republican Party, dominated by Trump supporters, endorsed her opponent. Trump eventually threw his support behind Fischer, which she highlighted in her campaign advertisements. In the general election, Fischer went up against Dan Osborn, an independent who out-fundraised her by $1 million. In her victory speech, Fischer criticized “out-of-state Democrats” for attempting to “buy a Nebraska Senate seat,” adding, “they wasted their money. As it turned out, no matter how much the media and the Democrats wanted it to happen, Nebraskans still vote for candidates who share their values.”
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