Saturday was a tense one on Capitol Hill. It was the final day Congress had to avert a government shutdown — the 15th time it would have happened in the last 40-some years. Spoiler: The House passed an 11th hour bipartisan bill, which was to then head to the Senate. It was a wild day, made all the wilder by one Democrat pulling a fire alarm during a key vote for some reason.
Per CBS News, Jamaal Bowman, a progressive member of the House Democrats, admitted to pulling the alarm, which came as the chamber was voting on a stopgap spending bill that would delay a potential shutdown for another 45 days. House members were quick to spread discord about it, claiming it was an intentional — and illegal — attempt to delay the vote.
Among them were Marjorie Taylor Greene, who said Bowman should be treated just like the Jan. 6 protesters (whose actions she’s defended).
Republican representative Nicole Malliotakis vowed to draw up a resolution to have Bowman expelled.
Some simply called for him to resign
As for Bowman, Emma Simon, a spokesperson for him, claimed that it was an accident. “Congressman Bowman did not realize he would trigger a building alarm as he was rushing to make an urgent vote,” Simon said. “The Congressman regrets any confusion.”
Bowman himself told reporters that he “thought the alarm would open the door”
Bowman has been a critic of some of the shadier Republican House members, such as George Santos. Santos was one of the Republicans who dragged him over the incident.
An investigation is underway, which should be fun. In the meantime, at least it now seems unlikely that the MAGA crowd is going to shut down the government.
(Via CBS News)