When Nancy Pelosi petulantly tore up her copy of President Trump’s State of the Union address, she no doubt thought that she was getting a twofer. Not just pay-back at Trump for conspicuously refusing to shake her hand earlier, but staging some grand political theatre for the titillation of the Democrat base.
As it turns out, Pelosi may have inadvertently hit a hat-trick. All of the above, and law-breaking, too!
Multiple lawmakers indicated on Wednesday that they were taking action against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for ripping up President Donald Trump’s State of the Union Address last night.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) wrote on Twitter: “BREAKING: I’m filing an ethics complaint against @SpeakerPelosi for destroying @realDonaldTrump’s State of the Union speech. Her conduct was beneath the dignity of the House, and a potential violation of law (18 USC 2071). Nobody is above the law. She must be held accountable.”
Without doubt, Pelosi’s fit of pique played well to the Blue benches. Democrat voters lapped it up. OMG! How will Drumpf survive THIS? Like Hillary Clinton’s “basket of deplorables” jibe, though, Pelosi’s spiteful hissy-fit didn’t play so well in the vast swathes of flyover country which delivered Trump the White House in 2016. What voters from Wisconsin to Florida saw was an LA elitist sneering and tearing up a testimonial to American greatness. As one Republican congressman described it, “She didn’t just rip up a few pieces of paper, she ripped up one of the last Tuskegee Airmen, a child who survived birth at 21 weeks, the morning Mueller family, and a soldier’s homecoming”.
Certain lawmakers are even less impressed.
In a letter addressed to Ethics Committee Chairman Ted Deutch (D-FL), Gaetz requested that the Committee open an investigation “into Speaker Pelosi’s flagrant violation of decorum, as defined in clauses 1 and 2 of House Rule XXIII, and request a criminal referral for her potential violation of 18 U.S.C. §2071 (Concealment, removal, or mutilation of documents), following President Trump’s recent State of the Union address of February 4, 2020. Her unseemly behavior certainly warrants censure.”
Later in the letter, Gaetz added: “It is hard to overlook the symbolism of such a gesture — the sense that Speaker Pelosi was utterly dismissive of the President’s achievements, and, more importantly, the achievements of the American people.”
Gaetz said that Pelosi potentially committed a crime by violating 18 U.S.C. §2071.
dailywire.com/news/breaking-lawmakers-file-ethics-complaint-resolution-condemning-pelosi-for-ripping-up-speech
That particular statute allows for up to three years in jail. Pelosi might have to learn to like her martinis made with the best prison hooch: shanked, not stirred.
The brickbats for Pelosi are coming from both sides of the political aisle.
A top congressman and prominent Democrat law professor are both calling on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to resign after her conduct during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address last night […]
George Washington University Law professor Jonathan Turley, a self-described Democrat, also joined [Lee] Zeldin in calling for Pelosi to step down following her conduct, calling her a “partisan troll.”
As Turley points out, regardless of whether Pelosi actually broke the law, she has at the very least traduced the role of speaker.
“It was the tradition of the House that a speaker must remain in stone-faced neutrality no matter what comes off that podium. The tradition ended last night with one of the more shameful and inglorious moments of the House in its history…it was one of the lowest moments to unfold on the floor. That is why I argue in the Hill that, if Pelosi does not apologize and agree to honor the principle of neutrality and civility at the State of the Union, she should resign as speaker.”
dailywire.com/news/breaking-lawmaker-democrat-professor-call-for-pelosi-to-resign-speakership
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