The Democratic-controlled U.S. Home of Representatives on Wednesday censured outspoken conservative Republican Congressman Paul Gosar of Arizona for posting an animated video to social media that depicted him putting a liberal foe, Consultant Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, with a sword and attacking President Joe Biden.
After a contentious debate, the Home voted virtually completely alongside social gathering strains, 223-207, to rebuke the six-term congressman and take away him from his two committee assignments, the Home Oversight and Pure Assets committees. Two Republicans voted for the censure.
Gosar shared the video earlier this month, an altered anime clip — a method of Japanese animation — that additionally included interspersed video of Border Patrol officers and migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border. A personality depicting Gosar struck a lady that appeared like Ocasio-Cortez with a sword slash to her neck and in addition confirmed him attacking Biden.
Gosar, a dentist earlier than being elected to Congress in 2010, eliminated the video from social media after Democratic opponents assailed it as unbecoming and beneath the dignity of Congress, however he has refused to apologize.
When first requested in regards to the video’s content material, his workplace stated, “Everybody must calm down.”
On the Home ground, Gosar spoke briefly, defending the video.
“Our nation is affected by the plague of unlawful immigration,” he stated. “There isn’t any risk within the cartoon apart from the specter of unlawful immigration.”
Ocasio-Cortez, a second-term lawmaker from New York, requested fellow Home members, “Does anybody on this chamber suppose that is acceptable? What’s so exhausting about saying that is improper?”
Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi assailed Gosar’s actions, saying, “We can’t be threatening one other member (of the Home) or the president. It’s normalizing violence. It isn’t humorous.”
However Home Minority Chief Kevin McCarthy accused Democrats of a double customary with their political assaults on Republicans.
“Guidelines are for thee, not for me,” he stated was the Democratic credo. The present session of Congress, he stated, “will go down in historical past because the damaged Congress,” with Democrats aiming to “silence dissidents.”
It’s the second time this yr that the Democratic majority has disciplined a Republican critic. Within the earlier case, Consultant Marjorie Taylor Greene was stripped of her committee assignments for spreading hateful and violent conspiracy theories.