House GOP forces vote on censuring Jamaal Bowman
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Rep. Jamaal Bowman. Photo: Haiyun Jiang/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
A top House Republican on Tuesday forced a vote on a measure to censure Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.).
Why it matters: The measure takes aim at Bowman for pulling a House office building fire alarm in September. He has pleaded guilty to one local criminal charge over the incident.
Driving the news: Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.), the secretary of the House Republican conference, introduced what is known as a "privileged" motion on her three-page resolution to censure Bowman.
- The move forces the House to vote on the measure within two legislative days, meaning the vote would have to take place by Thursday.
- Censuring a House member "registers the House's deep disapproval" of a member's conduct, according to the House website.
The details: The measure notes that Bowman pulled the alarm just ahead of a vote on a measure to keep the government funded.
- "Representative Bowman forced the evacuation of the Cannon House Office Building and disrupted the work of the Congress as a vote was underway on the floor of the House," it says, without explicitly accusing him of obstruction.
- Bowman has insisted he was trying to open an emergency door to make his way to the vote, and surveillance footage shows him attempting to open the door before pulling the alarm and then trying several other doors.
What we're watching: Republicans have roundly condemned Bowman, but they have a narrow majority, and just a handful of defections could sink the measure.
- Lawmakers in both parties have expressed exasperation at the back-and-forth censure, expulsion and impeachment efforts that many in Congress see as partisan retribution.
- Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), who represents a district President Biden won in 2020, told Axios: "I'm not going to defend a guy who purposefully pulled a fire alarm during a vote."
