The House of Representatives devolved into chaos Tuesday over whether House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had the right to call a series of tweets from President Donald Trump that told four progressive lawmakers of color to “go back” to other countries “racist,” as a matter of official record.

The controversy started during a debate over a House resolution condemning Trump’s tweets (the resolution ultimately passed on a vote of 240-187, with four Republican lawmakers voting in favor). Pelosi called his remarks racist during a speech on the House floor.

.@SpeakerPelosi: "Every single member of this institution…should join us in condemning the president's racist tweets. To do anything less would be a shocking rejection of our values and a shameful abdication of our oath of office to protect the American people." pic.twitter.com/nsskh7TuCS — CSPAN (@cspan) July 16, 2019

“Every single member of this institution should join us in condemning the president’s racist tweets,” Pelosi said. “To do anything less would be a shocking rejection of our values and a shameful abdication of our oath of office to protect the American people.”

According to MSN news, Republicans called for Pelosi’s words to be removed from the official record, arguing the speaker broke a House parliamentary rule that states lawmakers cannot malign the character of the president.

BREAKING NEWS —> Speaker Pelosi just broke the rules of the House, and is no longer permitted to speak on the floor of the House for the rest of the day. — Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) July 16, 2019

What ensued was hours of tumult on the House floor that pushed Democrats and Republicans into their respective corners, caused the former president of the Congressional Black Caucus to “abandon” his duties presiding over the House floor, and that left Pelosi — the House speaker — temporarily banned from speaking on the House floor for the rest of the day.

“Let us preserve those ideals of order and decency this body was founded on,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said on the House floor as he called for Pelosi’s remarks to be removed from the record. “Madame Speaker, it’s not just our nation that’s watching, but the world is watching. I hope you can rise to this occasion.”

But for Democrats, now in the House majority, Pelosi’s statement — and the resolution — are a matter of accountability.

“We can’t be gagged when we want to criticize the actions of the president,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) said.

In the middle of a vote, civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) told reporters outside the floor of the House, “The president is a racist. We can not deny that.”

Pelosi calling Trump’s tweets racist on the House floor was met with immediate objection from the Republican side of the aisle.

Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) said she broke the House rules by attacking Trump’s character.

But Pelosi said the parliamentarian (the official who advises representatives on the House’s rules) had already signed off on her speech, and refused to withdraw her words. Then came the chaos.

Republicans and Democrats engaged in an hour-long deliberation, with tensions escalating on the floor. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus who was presiding over the House floor during Pelosi’s speech, decided to “abandon the chair” out of frustration.

While presiding in the House, @Repcleaver: "We don't ever, ever want to pass up, it seems, an opportunity to escalate, and that's what this is…we want to just fight. I abandon the chair." pic.twitter.com/tEikUaRYPt — CSPAN (@cspan) July 16, 2019

“We don’t ever, ever want to pass up, it seems, an opportunity to escalate,” Cleaver said, chastising the lawmakers on the floor. “I dare anyone to look at any of the footage and see if there was any unfairness. But unfairness is not enough because we just want to fight. I abandon the chair.”

In Cleaver’s absence, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) took the chair and brought with him a decision — one that surprised his own party.

He ruled from the position of the chair that Pelosi’s words were not in order; in other words lawmakers, including Pelosi, could not say Trump or his tweets were racist. Instead, they would go on to say the rhetoric coming out of the White House was.

That ruling pushed the House floor to a vote: The body as a whole would have to decide whether Pelosi’s comments calling Trump’s tweet’s racist would be removed from the official record. Democrats stood in lockstep: The motion to strike them failed 190-232. Independent Rep. Justin Amash (MI), who recently left the Republican Party, voted with Democrats.