congress House thrown into chaos after Pelosi decries Trump's 'racist' tweets on floor

The House voted along party lines to allow Speaker Nancy Pelosi to call President Donald Trump's tweets about minority Democratic lawmakers "racist" in the Congressional Record on Tuesday, overriding a parliamentary ruling and GOP objections.

Pelosi's comments were initially ruled "out of order" on the floor itself, a small victory for the Republicans during a tense day in which both sides exchanged accusations of racism, hypocrisy and indecorous behavior unworthy of Congress or the country.


The drama over Pelosi's comments, sure to rankle Trump, played out before the House voted 240-187 to condemn Trump's weekend tweets about four Democratic members of color — . Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts. All 235 Democrats were joined by four Republicans and Rep. Justin Amash (I-Mich.) in backing the measure.

House members aren't allowed to refer to Trump or his tweets as racist when speaking on the floor, even though the resolution they voted on Tuesday said as much. These rules on floor decorum are part of a package the body approved on the first day of current Congress.



That led to a bizarre scene on Tuesday: Only clerks reading the resolution aloud were allowed to say the resolution condemned Trump's "racist tweets," demonstrating once again how different lawmaking is from real life.



The chaotic dispute began when Pelosi went to the floor to bash Trump over his tweets about "the squad," as the four freshman lawmakers refer to themselves.

Trump said the four Democrats should "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came," after incorrectly stating they were originally from other countries. Three of the lawmakers — Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib and Pressley — were born in the United States, while Omar was born in Somalia and became a U.S. citizen two decades ago when she was 17.

Trump's tweet caused an immediate uproar throughout Washington, and lawmakers in both parties objected. House Democrats quickly drafted a resolution decrying Trump's "racist tweets."

Yet House rules prevent a member from referring to the president or any of his statements as racist on the floor. Democrats warned each other to be careful and follow the rule during a closed-door meeting Tuesday morning.

Pelosi, however, decided to push the limits.

"Every single member of this institution, Democratic and Republican, should join us in condemning the president's racist tweets," Pelosi said during her floor speech. "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."

Republicans immediately objected. Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) asked Pelosi to "rephrase" her statement, and when she refused, he sought to have the words stricken from the official record.

No speaker has had their words "taken down," as the process is referred to, in 35 years, and even challenging a speaker's comments is considered a serious breach of etiquette. Collins' request led to a nearly two-hour delay in the floor proceedings.

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), a member of the Congressional Black Caucus who was sitting in the speaker's chair for the dispute, didn't want to be part of it when it became clear Pelosi was going to lose via a ruling by the House parliamentarian over whether her comments would be allowed.

While Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) urged Cleaver to ignore the parliamentarian's ruling — a huge risk for a chamber that religiously follows precedent — the Missouri Democrat decided to "abandon the chair," a shocking move that left it empty for a moment.

As Cleaver stormed off the floor, several Democratic members could be heard gasping. Others turned to each other with confused looks.

“This whole day, we haven’t gotten anything for the American public," Cleaver later told reporters. "And at the center of this is just one man, all this is based on one man’s words.”

Democrats then scrambled to find someone to take Cleaver's place. Members of the Congressional Black Caucus, several of whom were on the floor for the debate, refused, not wanting be the one to strike the speaker’s comments. Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.), a former CBC chairman, briefly stepped in, followed by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, who read a parliamentary ruling when announcing that Pelosi's comments were "out of order."

When asked whether Cleaver's abandonment of the chair was unprecedented, Hoyer said, “I’ve not seen it before."

There was a lengthy delay after Collins' request, during which leadership on both sides of the aisle, the parliamentarian, and various members involved in the debate consulted. That led to Hoyer's announcement and a party line vote. That vote allowed Pelosi's remarks to remain in the Congressional Record as part of the official debate, even though members still can't call Trump a racist on the floor.

Afterward, Collins said the House prizes decorum and he hopes “we recover that confidence soon and more forward with respect for the American people who sent elected officials, including the president, to represent them in Washington.”

Pelosi, however, remained defiant.



“I stand by my statement,” Pelosi told reporters as she walked back onto the House floor. “I’m proud of the attention that is being called to it, because what the president said is completely inappropriate against our colleagues."

Melanie Zanona contributed to this story.

