Congress returned after seven weeks and everything blew up
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The House of Representatives had, by any reasonable standard, an absolutely insane week — marked by censure votes, indictments and a literal fire at the U.S. Capitol complex — as lawmakers returned from their seven-week absence.
- To cap it off, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), one of the chamber's biggest firebrands, announced Friday night she'll resign from Congress after her public split from President Trump.
Why it matters: To members in both parties, the chaos was simply the crescendo to a years-long period of shame for the lower chamber.
- "The fact that the Capitol was literally on fire yesterday, I think, is indicative of what's going on inside of it," Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) told Axios on Friday.
- Said Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.): "The fire in the subway was a fitting end to an absolute hair-on-fire week for the House of Representatives. Embarrassing. Absolutely embarrassing."
- "There's something weird in the air for sure," said Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), telling Axios that "the rhythms and sense of normalcy here are completely shot" after seven weeks of absence.
Monday: New York City councilman Chi Ossé kicked things off by filing paperwork to launch a primary challenge against House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.).
- The House voted later that night to advance a measure introduced by Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) rebuking Rep. Chuy García (D-Ill.) for announcing his retirement after his state's filing deadline.
- García's move ensured his chief of staff will be the lone Democratic candidate to replace him, sparking cries of undemocratic behavior.
Tuesday: After the White House and GOP leadership abandoned a months-long pressure campaign to stop the release of the Justice Department's Jeffrey Epstein files, the House voted 427-1 to force release of the documents.
- Nearly two dozen House Democrats voted with Republicans to pass Gluesenkamp Perez's resolution of disapproval against García.
- Republicans then moved to censure Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands) and oust her from committees after files from Epstein's estate revealed she texted with the disgraced financier during a congressional hearing.
- Democrats retaliated by moving to force a vote to censure Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) and remove him from a committee over allegations of domestic abuse, stolen valor and financial misconduct, all of which he denies. The Plaskett vote failed, and Democrats withdrew their Mills motion.
Wednesday: Frustrated by the Mills censure being withdrawn, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) drafted a new one that would have removed him from both his committees. Mace also used several vulgar expletives on the House floor to describe Mills.
- The House Ethics Committee launched an investigation into many of the allegations against Mills. The House then voted on Mace's censure bill, which failed in an overwhelming bipartisan vote.
- Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) was indicted for allegedly stealing $5 million in FEMA overpayments to her company and using much of the money to fund her 2021 campaign. She said she is innocent.
- The Justice Department also announced that a former staffer for Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.)had been charged for allegedly staging her own assault. According to the criminal complaint, Natalie Green, 26, was found with the words "TRUMP WHORE" written on her stomach.
Thursday: Trump appeared to suggest a group of congressional Democrats' comments urging military service members to disobey unlawful orders were "punishable by DEATH!," prompting widespread outrage from Democratic lawmakers.
- Rep. Jason Crow's (D-Colo.) office asked U.S. Capitol Police for an investigation into Trump over the comments, with many of the targeted lawmakers saying they faced a surge in threats.
- Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) announced plans to force a vote to expel Cherfilus-McCormick from Congress after previously threatening a censure vote against her.
- A subway car that runs between the Capitol and the Rayburn House Office Building caught fire, sending two Capitol Police officers to the hospital.
Friday: The House passed a resolution to "denounce the horrors of socialism" just before New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, met with Trump at the White House.
- The vote on the House measure was delayed by a clash between Reps. Maria Salazar (R-Fla.) and Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), which ended with Salazar agreeing to formally withdraw remarks she made on the floor criticizing Waters for taking multiple trips to Cuba.
- The House Ethics Committee also announced they'd launched an investigation into Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) and his chief of staff.
- A Collins spokesperson described the "bogus referral" as "nothing but a desperate and baseless attack by Rep. Collins' political opponents," adding that they looked forward to "this frivolous complaint being dismissed."
What they're saying: The week left some members desperate for structural reforms in the House, particularly when it comes to censure.
- "We need a rule change on censures ... this is insane. We can't function like this," said Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.). "Everybody that I've talked to on the floor is completely and totally exasperated that we've come back from this time away and this is what we are wasting our time on."
- Reps. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and Don Bacon (R-Neb.) have proposed raising the censure threshold from a simple majority to 60%, as Axios first reported.
- Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also fumed that the socialism vote was a waste of time and energy: "It would be really important for us to be addressing the kitchen table needs of the American people."
Editor's note: This story has been updated with comment from a Collins spokesperson.
