A majority in the House of Representatives removes Republican Paul Gosar from committee work. The reason is a violently animated video he published on Twitter.
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Gosar published in last week an animated video on his twitter account. The video shows him killing Democratic congressman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with a sword.
The video is an obvious threat to the life of a popularly elected politician, Democrats argued before the vote on Wednesday. They also claimed that Gosar’s behavior would not have been tolerated in any other workplace, and that it should not be in Congress either.
In the vote, Gosar was reprimanded and deprived of all committee work he is involved in. The vote largely followed the party lines, with 223 against 207 votes.
The vote is an abuse of power by Democrats to divert attention from national issues, argued Republican minority leader Kevin McCarthy.
Democrats responded that the decision was not political.
– These actions require an answer. We can not allow members of Congress to joke about killing each other or threatening the President of the United States. This puts both our elected representatives in danger, and is an insult to the House of Representatives as an institution, said House of Representatives leader Nancy Pelosi.
Frustration among Democrats
In an emotional speech, Ocasio-Cortez stated that one must set a limit.
– Our work here is important. Our examples matter. Our service to the country matters. And when we as leaders in this country call for violence against our colleagues, this will also lead to violence in the country. This is where we have to set the limit, she said.
Gosar rejected what he thought was a misconception that the cartoon clip was dangerous or threatening.
– It’s not. I do not defend violence against anyone. I’ve never done that. It was not my intention to offend anyone, Gosar said.
The decision to vote for Gosar was made as a result of frustration among Democrats over Republicans who refused to publicly oppose Gosar.
According to the news agency AP, Gosar has previously made a number of exciting proposals. Instead, Republican leaders have largely ignored his actions and urged their party colleagues to vote no in Wednesday’s resolution. Republicans have also warned that attempts to set a precedent on this issue could backfire on Democrats in the future if they are in the minority in the House of Representatives.
“We have better things to do in the House of Representatives than to be Twitter moderators,” said Republican Matt Gaetz.
Removed from two committees
Wednesday’s decision means that Gosar will be removed from two committees, where Ocasio-Cortez sits on one. The decision means that Gosar’s ability to formulate legislation and serve its voters is limited.
The resolution points out that representations of violence can lead to actual violence and endanger the safety of elected representatives. The resolution cites the January 6 storming of Congress as an example.
Gosar is the 24th member of the House of Representatives to be reprimanded. Rebuke has no practical significance, other than that it remains in history and as part of the representatives’ careers. However, it is the most powerful form of punishment that the House of Representatives can issue, apart from expulsion, which requires a two-thirds majority.
Gosar is the second representative this year to be removed from committee work. The first was the controversial Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia.
90 seconds
Gosar is in his sixth term as congressional representative. In the video he posted on Twitter over a week ago, he wrote: “Are there any anime fans out there?”. border guards and migrants.
In a 10-second sequence in the video, animated characters had their faces replaced with images of Republicans Gosar, Greene and Lauren Boebert. In the clip, they fight against other animated characters. Gosar’s figure holds a sword that hits the neck of what looks like Ocasio-Cortez. The video also shows him attacking President Joe Biden.
Ocasio-Cortez has received several death threats in the past, which has led to stricter security measures around her. She says Gosar has not apologized. She criticizes McCarthy for not condemning Gosar.
– What is it that is so difficult about saying that this is wrong? This is not about me. This is not about Gosar. This is about what we are willing to accept, she said in the hall on Wednesday.
Adam Kinzinger was one of the few Republicans who voted with the Democrats.
– We must hold members who encourage or glorify violence, and who spread or make dangerous conspiracies, accountable. Failure to do so will bring us one step closer to realizing this fantasy violence, Kinzinger said.
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