The Alabama House of Representatives suddenly adjourned tonight after Rep. Arnold Mooney read part of a letter asking the House to censure Rep. John Rogers for comments made on the House floor several weeks ago.

“He stated, ‘So you kill them now or you kill them later -- it doesn’t matter,’” Mooney read from his letter, quoting comments Rogers made on the House floor when Rogers was opposing the bill to ban almost all abortions in Alabama, which later passed.

“Representative Rogers’ comments have brought national shame and ridicule upon the House and his comments do not represent the Alabama House of Representatives, its staff or its membership,” Mooney, a Republican from Shelby County, read from his letter.

House Speaker Mac McCutcheon, R-Monrovia, stopped Mooney before he finished reading.

“Turn the letter in if you wish, but there’s no call for this,” McCutcheon said.

The House then immediately adjourned on a motion from House Majority Leader Nathaniel Ledbetter, R-Rainsville.

Mooney rose to read the letter tonight while Rogers was carrying out what he said was his stated intent to block legislation. The House was working on an agenda of about 40 bills with special rules allowing limited debate time. Under those rules, any House member could kill a bill by talking for 10 minutes. Rogers said he was blocking bills in retaliation for Republican lawmakers stopping one of his bills.

“You can’t sit back and let people just run over you and disrespect you," Rogers said. "You’ve got to stand up and make a showing because I represent the same amount of people they represent. So why should I get treated that way?”

Rep. Merika Coleman, D-Birmingham, wondered why Mooney waited three weeks after Rogers’ abortion comments before asking for the censure. Mooney recently announced he is a candidate for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate seat held by Doug Jones.

“If he felt as strongly as the letter appeared to be, you would have done it closer to the actual event that you referenced,” Coleman said.

“I think tonight was more about grandstanding than anything. And that’s what I’m upset about."

The bills on tonight’s House agenda are probably dead because the legislative session is nearing its end, Coleman said.

“You live for another day,” Coleman said. “We’ll all go to sleep tonight and we’ll still have to continue to do the work of the people of the state of Alabama.”

McCutcheon declined comment as he left the chamber.