An Era of Censure: Examining the Congressional Historic Session

The last twelve months in the U.S. House has entered the history books. Congresspeople established benchmarks for the most extended oration and the most protracted roll call, and presided over the lengthiest government shutdown.

Furthermore, legislators spent considerable energy attempting to reprimand each other through disciplinary motions, the chamber's official mechanism for rebuke. A review of official proceedings indicates a minimum of 17 attempts since the January to condemn another lawmaker via a censure or a simpler statement of disapproval.

Should a reprimand resolution is approved by a most members, the targeted lawmaker must stand before the rostrum as the speaker informs them that they are being disciplined for their bad behavior. This constitutes the practical repercussions – they retain their seat and their legislative power, but potentially damaging their public image.

Despite the fact that most of these passed, the flurry grew so intense that by the end of the year, a group of lawmakers from both parties proposed changing the procedures to make it more difficult for reprimands to be approved. “What if we end the circular firing squad in the House?” asked one of the measure's authors.

What follows is a review at the alleged misdeeds at the heart of the wave of reprimands:

Labeling a Figure a ‘Offensive Name’

The earliest reprimand motion of the year was introduced in February against a member of the Democratic Party representative. The resolution accused the official of “provoking aggression against a special government employee”. It cited an event during a panel session where the lawmaker uttered a crude remark about the figure in a particularly creative manner, as well as a follow-up remark about employing “physical force” to a political fight. The full body did not end up voting on it.

Shouting at the Commander-in-Chief

In the midst of a presentation to a joint session of Congress, a Democratic lawmaker heckled the nation's leader, exclaiming “he lacks a popular mandate” while pumping a staff in the air. The House speaker directed that the congressperson forcibly removed. Following this, several condemnation resolutions were proposed aimed at the lawmaker. A short time after, the chamber approved one of these resolutions, with several members of the lawmaker's own political affiliation voting in favor alongside the majority party. This remains the only censure to actually win approval during the year.

Using Ethnic Tropes

Only a short time after the previous censure, a resolution was introduced aiming at a lawmaker for comments made about the disruptive colleague. The proposal charged the legislator of using language that was “offensive, belittling, and racially charged toward another colleague”. This proposal never came up for a vote on the House floor.

Mocking a State Executive's Mobility Aid

One more condemnation attempt centered on claimed derogatory comments made by a congressperson about a governor who is a wheelchair user. The nicknames were viewed as deeply disrespectful and prompted a censure resolution that also failed to reach a vote.

Incident with Immigration Authorities

Multiple reprimand proposals were introduced against a lawmaker after she was taken into custody and indicted following an confrontation outside a federal detention facility. One of these resolutions was brought up in the chamber, but was blocked thanks to a alliance of lawmakers from the other side and a small group of representatives from the party that introduced it. This marked the first of several instances where representatives voted across the aisle to defeat a reprimand motion.

Allegations of Discrimination

A lawmaker was the subject of separate reprimand efforts over the summer for discriminatory comments made about political leaders of color. The statements included derogatory nicknames and calls for deportation. None of these measures was put up for a vote.

Criticizing a Late Activist Legacy

In the wake of a prominent individual's death, a censure resolution was introduced against a representative for remarks that were considered “disrespectful” toward the late person and those honoring him. For another time, the resolution was blocked with the assistance of a handful of representatives from the sponsor's own party. One of those who blocked the censure commented that the correct approach to “objectionable comments” is not censorship, but “more speech”.

‘Subverting the Integrity of a Open Election’

The barrage of condemnations peaked late in the year when, during a crucial legislative action, a lawmaker spoke publicly to claim that a fellow Democrat had planned his departure in a manner to practically guarantee a chosen replacement would be win his congressional seat. The resolution expressed disapproval of this conduct for “harming the integrity of a open electoral contest”. This measure provoked anger but ended up being approved, with support from the majority of the minority party and a sizable bloc of members from the complainant's political affiliation.

Texting Jeffrey Epstein

As a bill to mandate the publication of government-held files related to deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein was close to approval, it was revealed that a congresswoman had texted with Epstein in the midst of a official proceeding. Capitalizing on the situation, opposition party lawmakers introduced a reprimand motion against the representative. This measure failed thanks to united opposition from the lawmaker's party and the votes of a small number of lawmakers from the sponsoring party.

A Broad Spectrum of Supposed Wrongdoings

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