Republicans vow to reinstate representative censured for AOC tweet
Washington DC – House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Thursday vowed to reinstate the Republican lawmaker who was censured for tweeting a video depicting himself killing New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
A day after Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona was ousted from committees by Democrats, McCarthy angrily threatened to reverse the move and to retaliate in kind if and when the GOP retakes the House of Representatives.
"(Gosar) will have committees," McCarthy said at a press conference in the Capitol. "(He) may have other committee assignments. (He) may have better committee assignments."
McCarthy defended Gosar, who refused to apologize for tweeting an anime video last week depicting himself killing AOC and attacking President Biden.
AOC slammed Gosar as "creepy" and asked her colleagues "what is so hard" about punishing him for the crude attack.
Just two Republicans joined all the Democrats in voting to censure Gosar, making him the first lawmaker to face the punishment since Democratic Rep. Charles Rangel 11 years ago.
The unrepentant Gosar retweeted the video an hour after the vote.
McCarthy talks of plans to punish House Democrats
The GOP leader said Democrats were wrong to strip Gosar of his committee assignments, which are considered plum perches for lawmakers. He said the same thing about the stripping of committee assignments from Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene over her past white nationalist remarks.
He suggested that Republicans wouldn't hesitate to use their power to punish controversial Democrats if he wins the House Speaker's gavel after the 2022 midterm elections.
Even though Republican lawmakers nearly unanimously balked at punishing Gosar, many of them are pushing to strip committee assignments from 13 GOP moderates who voted for Biden's $1.2-trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Nineteen Republican senators, including Senate Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell, also backed the public works bill.
Democrats say they would back any effort to punish a lawmaker from either party who threatens a fellow member of Congress.
McCarthy repeated his incongruous attacks on Democrats, whom he accused of stirring violence during racial justice protests and other supposed transgressions that don't involve threats against colleagues or the president.
He proudly noted that he spoke earlier on Thursday with Donald Trump when the former president called him from the golf course.
"I have lots of friends," McCarthy told reporters. "I talk to a lot of people."
Cover photo: Collage: IMAGO / ZUMA Wire