The House voted Wednesday to censure Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), and strip him of his committee assignments, as punishment for a doctored video that depicted him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).
The vote was 223-207-1, with only 2 Republicans voting in favor, and 1 abstaining.
He’s the second House Republican to be sanctioned for promoting political violence; following Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), for actions before her election. Unlike Greene, his offenses were committed while in office.
Gosar has been one of the most toxic Republicans in Congress, referring to his behavior, not his political positions (which are extreme). His own family has disavowed him, with 6 of his 9 siblings endorsing his opponents in recent elections. Despite this, he’s popular in his mostly-rural district, which votes roughly two-thirds Republican.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) “urged other lawmakers to vote ‘yes’ on the resolution,” CNN reported (here), “saying that it is not about partisan politics, it is about ‘decency’ and ‘security for our members.’ Hoyer argued this vote was about the ‘rule of law’ and ‘no one, Democrat or Republican ought to be involved to engage in the promotion of violence against a fellow member or indeed a fellow American.'”
That’s exactly correct, and shouldn’t be controversial.
Gosar contended the video wasn’t “dangerous or threatening.” Every Democrat in the House begs to differ. Some Republicans accused Democrats of holding him to a “double standard,” but if they’re accusing Democratic members of similar conduct they have to make their case, and in any event that shouldn’t get Gosar off the hook. Other Republicans floated other reasons.
It’s not a good look for the Republicans, who have emerged from the 2020 election cycle looking more like a street gang than a political party. If they don’t want the all-important Middle America suburban voters to see the GOP and gun-brandishing thugs threatening “civil war” as one and the same, they have to do better than this.
Related story: CNN says “House Republicans are mostly shrugging off violent rhetoric within their ranks” and even “vicious threats” against their own members from within their party. Read story here.
Related story: Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) defends Gosar and gets blowback. Read story here.
Op-Ed: “Paul Gosar is why censure exists.” Read it here.