House GOP Joins With Democrats to Prevent a Censure Free-for-All

Twenty-three House Republicans joined with Democrats to table a censure motion on Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) for her vile, anti-Semitic remarks following the October 7 attack by Hamas. Tabling the motion essentially killed it — for the time being.

Shortly after that, first-term Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.) withdrew her motion to censure Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), citing the 23 Republican votes to kill the Tlaib censure. Indeed, while no deal had been announced on the two censure motions, Balint cited the cooperation in defeating the Tlaib censure as the reason she dropped her effort to censure Greene.

It appears that both parties have adopted a "Mutually Assured Destruction" policy where censures are concerned. But some Republicans believe that Greene's transgressions against political correctness are nowhere near as serious as Tlaib's anti-Semitic rants against Israel.

Balint couldn't resist a sneering parting shot at Republicans in withdrawing her censure motion.

"Given the fact that this conference voted unanimously for an election denier, there was a question of whether my resolution to censure Rep. Greene could pass with the votes it needed from ‘moderate’ Republicans. They have shown they are unable to stand up in moments that require courage," Balint said, referring to the election of Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).

"But tonight, when 23 Republicans said ‘no’ to Rep. Greene’s bigotry, I saw this situation a little differently. I want to thank them for doing the right thing. And I’m going to hold back on the vote for now. Vermonters and people across the country need us to get to work and focus on the urgent needs facing working people here at home and around the world."

Sheesh, what a b**ch.

As with everything else, Democrats have weaponized the House disciplinary machinery to make political attacks on Republicans. 

Fox News:

Greene had blamed Tlaib for a protest last month that saw hundreds of Gaza cease-fire demonstrators arrested after they took over the Cannon House Office building. Greene repeatedly referred to the protest as an "insurrection" in the text of her resolution.

After the vote, Greene railed against the 23 Republicans who opted to table her resolution, calling them "feckless."

"This is why Republicans NEVER do anything to stop the communists Democrats or ever hold anyone accountable!!" Greene wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

One would hardly refer to Rep. Chip Roy as a "feckless" moderate. He explained his vote to table the resolution: "Rep. Rashida Tlaib has repeatedly made outrageous remarks toward Israel and the Jewish people. Her conduct is unbecoming of a member of Congress and certainly worthy of condemnation - if not censure." 

"However, tonight’s feckless resolution to censure Tlaib was deeply flawed and made legally and factually unverified claims, including the claim of leading an ‘insurrection'…I voted to table the resolution. In January 2021, the legal term insurrection was stretched and abused by many following the events at the Capitol. We should not continue to perpetuate claims of 'insurrection' at the Capitol and we should not abuse the term now."

Amen to that.

In truth, the best way to discipline House members is to allow their constituents to pass judgment on them, not the opposition party. Even serial liar Rep. George Santos deserves to face his constituents rather than being expelled from the House. A majority of the House agreed with that as a motion to expel Santos fell short of a majority.

Washington Post:

Twenty-four House Republicans and 155 Democrats voted to expel Santos, while 182 Republicans and 31 Democrats voted against ousting him from Congress; 15 Democrats and four Republicans voted present.

The Republicans who voted for expulsion largely consisted of GOP lawmakers in swing districts, such as the New Yorkers who forced the vote and Reps. Thomas H. Kean Jr. (N.J.) and John James (Mich.). The Democrats who opposed expulsion came from all over the map, such as Rep. Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), who had just minutes earlier narrowly avoided her own punishment of censure over her opposition to the Israel-Gaza war. Rep. Brendan Boyle (Pa.), the top Democrat on the Budget Committee, voted present, as did members of the Ethics Committee who are overseeing the Santos investigation.

As rancid as Tlaib's statement on the Hamas attack was, they probably didn't deserve censure. It was, after all, protected speech. And while we may disagree with it, a congressman demonstrating stupidity is no reason for censure.