House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) got some bad news this week when House Republicans led by Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) filed a lawsuit against her to stop Democrats’ new proxy voting rule that will allow congressional lawmakers to vote on behalf of up to 10 other members.
Pelosi and her fellow Democrats shamelessly passed this rule during the coronavirus pandemic last Friday, without any GOP votes. While the rule is intended to just be in place temporarily for 45 days, Pelosi now has the power to lengthen or shorten the proxy voting period based on public health information, according to Roll Call.
The lawsuit was filed by McCarthy and at least 20 of his fellow Republicans, all of whom pointed out that the Constitution stipulates that a majority of lawmakers needs to be physically present in order to conduct business, which renders proxy voting unconstitutional.
“I just filed a lawsuit in federal court to overturn Speaker Pelosi’s unconstitutional proxy voting scheme,” McCarthy announced on Twitter. “It could allow as few as 20 Representatives to control the votes of 220. This is NOT the representative democracy our Founders envisioned or what our Constitution allows.”
I just filed a lawsuit in federal court to overturn Speaker Pelosi’s unconstitutional proxy voting scheme.
It could allow as few as 20 Representatives to control the votes of 220. This is NOT the representative democracy our Founders envisioned or what our Constitution allows.
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) May 26, 2020
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) agreed that the new rule was “unconstitutional,” adding “you gotta show up for work.”
“This week, House Democrats will break over 230 years of precedent and allow Members of Congress to vote by proxy on the House floor,” McCarthy wrote in a separate statement. “This is not simply arcane parliamentary procedure. It is a brazen violation of the Constitution, a dereliction of our duty as elected officials, and would silence the American people’s voice during a crisis.” Pelosi predictably fired back at the lawsuit by belittling it, calling it a “sad stunt.”
“The House’s position that remote voting by proxy during a pandemic is fully consistent with the Constitution is supported by expert legal analyses,” she added in a statement. “Further, the Supreme Court made clear over a century ago that the Constitution empowers each chamber of Congress to set its own procedural rules.”
What’s really “sad” is that Democrats have been shamelessly using a global pandemic that has killed hundreds of thousands of people in order to shove their radical agendas down the throats of Americans. Democrats have been having way too much leeway with this pandemic, and we trust this lawsuit serves as a reminder to them that they won’t get away with what they are doing.
This piece was written by PoliZette Staff on May 27, 2020. It originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.
Read more at LifeZette:
Former Van Halen front-man Sammy Hagar slams coronavirus lockdowns, refuses to comply
The toughest battle ever fought by the U.S. military
Ann Coulter blasts President Trump in a deranged rant: ‘You blithering idiot’