Though there has been much posturing and intrigue on the Republican side revolving around the ongoing battle for the coveted position of House Speaker, an unintentionally humorous moment occurred Wednesday that had Democrats reaching for the smelling salts.
During a speech she gave Wednesday on the House floor to again nominate former House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) after he failed to secure the votes needed during prior vote rounds, Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) talked about the importance of “diversity of thought” among Republicans and about how Democrats were loving the infighting going on in the GOP.
“Diversity of thought is a good thing,” Cammack stated. “It’s one of the things that sets us apart from our friends on the other side of the aisle. Yes, diversity of thought is a good thing.”
“But they want us divided,” she continued. “They want us to fight each other. That much has been made clear by the popcorn and blankets and alcohol that has come in over there.”
Cammack accusing them of drinking during official House business caused eruptions on the Democratic side of the aisle, as seen in the below video clip:
The Democrats got PISSED when Rep. Kat Cammack accused them of drinking during the Speaker votes lmfao. pic.twitter.com/nqbZnRy32F
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) January 4, 2023
As Politico noted, there were demands to have Cammack reprimanded for what she said, but it was not to be:
One lawmaker demanded the clerk “take down her words,” a process that effectively reprimands a member for violating decorum. But another member replied “there are no rules” because the chamber cannot adopt those until it selects a speaker. So, there is no mechanism in place to respond to Cammack’s words.
My thought on this: Who gives a rip about decorum right now? It’s gotten Republicans in Congress nowhere. Besides, we need more British Parliament-style debates in the House and Senate anyway – and not just for the sheer entertainment value of it all:
hell yeah we're getting into british parliament territory baby pic.twitter.com/UI6WLuUhGP
— Ashley Feinberg (@ashleyfeinberg) January 4, 2023
Who knows? Maybe next time around we’ll see actual evidence of a Democrat bringing alcohol onto the House floor as we did back in 2020 when Rep. Joe Cunningham (D-S.C.) cracked open a cold one during floor remarks he gave just weeks before exiting stage left from Congress. But unlike Cammack’s speech, Cunningham’s was all about unity and healing and stuff:
“For the betterment of this country, we have to come together, we have to sit down and listen to one another, and maybe even have a beer,” Cunningham said before grabbing a brew out of an inside pocket of his jacket and snapping it open.
“I raise this glass to my colleagues, both Democrats and Republicans,” he said as he held up what The Post and Courier identified as a can of DC Brau pale ale called Joint Resolution.
And I raise my glass of iced tea to Cammack for giving us something to chuckle over in the middle of all the high drama and bloviating taking place. Cheers!
Related: Cori Bush Steps on a Rake in Contemptuous Attack on Byron Donalds
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