It's certainly been an eventful day with the fight over the government shutdown, made even crazier by the act of Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) pulling the fire alarm in the Cannon Building before the vote when the Democrats were trying to find ways to delay the vote. 

BREAKING: Capitol police release photo of Jamaal Bowman pulling the fire alarm. pic.twitter.com/XpUoEu9lU4

— Greg Price (@greg_price11) September 30, 2023

As I reported earlier, Rep. Jamaal Bowmaan's spokesperson admitted he did it, but gave some nonsensical excuse that he "didn't think he would trigger a building alarm." 

He also is trying to say he thought it would open a door. 

Bowman tells reporters “I thought the alarm would open the door.”

— Juliegrace Brufke (@juliegraceb) September 30, 2023

That's ridiculous He's a former school principal. He knows what pulling a fire alarm will do. And idiocy isn't an excuse for breaking the law. What he did may have been "obstruction of an official proceeding," a charge that some of the J6 people were hit with. And some are now serving lengthy sentences. 

If he's now trying to argue he didn't understand it, then he's more confused than Joe Biden and shouldn't be in Congress. How do you pull the fire alarm as an adult man and not know the result? The problem for him was he was caught on camera, and now he has to come up with an excuse that doesn't get him charged. That's why his team was scrambling with this unbelievable response now. 

The reactions were swift and many compared the situation to the Jan. 6 defendants. Some called for the prosecution of Bowman for obstructing an official proceeding. 

So why hasn’t @SpeakerMcCarthy moved to arrest him? When will he be expelled from Congress?

Where are the consequences for this interference with democracy? https://t.co/MJ44Mm7MtV

— Amy Curtis (@RantyAmyCurtis) September 30, 2023

I’m still confused about definitions. Is this insurrection or democracy? https://t.co/BUuHnNIGOg

— Defiant Baptist (@DefiantBaptist) September 30, 2023

Jamaal Bowman was a principal for 10 years. For his office to claim he didn't know what would happen is extraordinary. As a principal, you are trained to know exactly what a fire alarm does and, more importantly, exactly the chain of events that takes place when one is pulled. https://t.co/VSD85wN0oL

— Joe Cunningham 𓅄 (@JoePCunningham) September 30, 2023

The congressman didn’t realize that setting off an alarm would actually trigger the alarm. Think about that for just a second. https://t.co/4NtNMX9BU4

— Fusilli Spock (@awstar11) September 30, 2023

“The Qanon Shaman did not realize his tour group had inadvertently diverted into House of Representatives; the tourist regrets his confusion” https://t.co/zi5YyQGqMD

— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) September 30, 2023

Comms team may want to consult with counsel before running with “committed crime but didn’t realize how big impact would be” excuse… https://t.co/8UxFHA1rdH

— Charlie Spies (@cspiesdc) September 30, 2023

.@RepBowman I hope this helps. https://t.co/c75AjuG1aF pic.twitter.com/NbnJ0C7ws1

— Rep. Brian Mast (@RepBrianMast) September 30, 2023

His people should not be offering up such silly things, particularly given this is a potential crime, and he just admitted the action. 

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) called for him to be prosecuted. 

Democrat Rep. Jamaal Bowman pulled the fire alarm in the Cannon building this afternoon and interrupted the official proceedings of the House as Republicans worked to keep the government open.

I’m calling on the DOJ to prosecute him using the same law they used to prosecute J6… pic.twitter.com/KlXjwVrkc1

— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) September 30, 2023