It was high drama on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives today as the full body was considering a resolution to condemn recent tweets by President Trump.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi called a series of tweets aimed at Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib “racist,” which caused Rep. Doug Collins to challenge Pelosi according to the House rules.
A 20-minute stand-still ensued as members huddled with parliamentarians, before Speaker Pro Tempore Rep. Emanuel Cleaver got fed up and quit.
While presiding in the House, @Repcleaver: "We don't ever, ever want to pass up, it seems, an opportunity to escalate, and that's what this is…we want to just fight. I abandon the chair." pic.twitter.com/tEikUaRYPt
— CSPAN (@cspan) July 16, 2019
“But unfairness is not enough because we just want to fight,” he huffed.
“I abandon the chair!” he said before throwing down the gavel and storming away.
Fox News reports Collins’ action could result in Pelosi being barred from speaking on the floor for the rest of the day:
When Pelosi’s remarks turned personal, Georgia Republican Rep. Doug Collins rose to challenge her and demand that her words be “taken down.” The extraordinary rebuke, the first of its kind involving a member of Congress and a speaker of the House in decades, theoretically could result in Pelosi being barred from speaking on the floor for the remainder of the day.
“There is no place anywhere for the president’s words, which are not only divisive, but dangerous — and have legitimized and increased fear and hatred of new Americans and people of color,” Pelosi, D-Calif., said. “It’s so sad because you would think that there would be a given that we would universally, in this body, just say, ‘Of course. Of course.'”
Pelosi continued, her voice rising: “There’s no excuse for any response to those words but a swift and strong unified condemnation. Every single member of this institution, Democratic and Republican, should join us in condemning the president’s racist tweets. To do anything less would be a shocking rejection of our values, and a shameful abdication of our oath of office to protect the American people. I urge a unanimous vote, and yield back the balance of my time.”
“As the consultation dragged on, Pelosi then appeared to leave the House floor, which itself constitutes a violation of House Rules when someone’s words are taken down. Members are supposed to be seated on the floor when a member’s words are stricken,” according to Fox News.
Majority Leader Steny Hoyer took over and determined that Pelosi’s comments were out of order, and Republicans moved to have the stricken from the record.
Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy confirmed Pelosi would be banned from speaking on the floor for the remainder of the day.
BREAKING NEWS —> Speaker Pelosi just broke the rules of the House, and is no longer permitted to speak on the floor of the House for the rest of the day.
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) July 16, 2019
“Speaker Pelosi just broke the rules of the House, and is no longer permitted to speak on the floor of the House for the rest of the day,” he wrote.
Leave a Comment
COMMENTS POLICY: We have no tolerance for messages of violence, racism, vulgarity, obscenity or other such discourteous behavior. Thank you for contributing to a respectful and useful online dialogue.