Driving the news: The House voted 214-191 on Thursday to censure Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) for pulling a Capitol Hill fire alarm ahead of a vote in September to head off a government shutdown.
- Just three Democrats joined Republicans in voting for censure, making it essentially a partisan maneuver.
- Bowman is the third lawmaker to face the symbolic rebuke this year: Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) was censured last month for her criticism of Israel and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) was censured in June for his promotion of Trump-Russia allegations.
The House also voted to expel former GOP Rep. George Santos this month after a bombshell Ethics Committee report accused him of a “complex web” of criminal wrongdoing.
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It was the first successful expulsion vote since 2002 and made Santos only the sixth House member in U.S. history to be expelled.
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And who could forget the unprecedented ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from his post? He announced this week he will resign from Congress at the end of the month.
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What we’re hearing: Lawmakers in both parties who want to work across the aisle and pass legislation are growing impatient with the continued dominance of partisan fights on the House floor.
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“We should be focused on getting stuff done,” said one House Republican. “We are hopeful the deck has been cleared and we return to our regular broadcast.”
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“All they do is vacate the chair, expulsions, censures, reprimands, impeachment,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.).