Tensions bubble in House GOP over proxy voting hypocrisy

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democrats implemented vote-by-proxy rules last year in response to the coronavirus pandemic, which prompted heavy criticism from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and other powerful Republicans. Republicans unsuccessfully sued over the rule, which they said was unconstitutional, and pointed out instances during which Democrats were absent from the House clearly because of convenience rather than health concerns.

But last week, several Republicans — Reps. Ted Budd, Matt Gaetz, Greg Steube of Florida and Rep. Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina — used the system not to avoid travel out of coronavirus concerns but to be in Orlando for CPAC, where they had speaking engagements, missing a vote on the massive $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief legislation.

HOUSE REPUBLICANS USE PROXY VOTING GOP ONCE REVILED AHEAD OF CPAC APPEARANCES

“Proxy voting is destroying Congress,” Gallagher, a Wisconsin Republican, said in a video posted to Twitter on Monday. “They sign a paper saying, ‘Due to the pandemic or the health emergency, I am unable to vote in person.’ But we know that they’re then going to other events. We had a bunch of Republicans go to CPAC on Friday. Democrats have been abusing this. The numbers go up on fly-out days.”

Roy first made his criticism of his party clear late on Friday evening, with parliamentary points of inquiry on the House floor about proxy voting rules.

“Would the chair consider it a violation of the rule for a member to be present physically here in the chamber and on the same day vote by proxy, having submitted said letter?” Roy asked. The member presiding as chairman responded that the chairman does not look at that.

“Proxy voting is an unconstitutional attack on a functional Congress — allowing members to avoid their responsibility to meet in D.C. to do their jobs,” Roy said on Monday. “If, as I do, you believe it’s unconstitutional — and wrong — then you shouldn’t do it, even if it’s hard.”

McCarthy gave the green light for his caucus to vote by proxy at the start of the new Congress out of concern for the safety of members at a time when coronavirus cases were high. But he told his members that if they vote by proxy, they should first remove themselves from the Republican lawsuit challenging the practice.

Some Republicans are defending proxy voting, though.

Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon told the Hill that disallowing proxy voting gives Democrats an advantage because they will respond to last-minute schedule changes with proxy voting rather than by having to rearrange their own schedules.

“It’s causing very little havoc on them and a lot of havoc on us, and we need to have 100% voting in my view,” Bacon said.

Gaetz wrote an op-ed for the Washington Examiner in November arguing in favor of proxy voting, breaking with the mainstream Republican line, because “time in Washington doesn’t make any of us better.”

“I support remote voting because we are better as public servants when we spend more time with the public we are elected to serve,” Gaetz said.

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Ironically, the hypocrisy of some Republicans on proxy voting is putting more attention on the issue, giving consistent GOP critics of the practice a louder voice.

“I am seriously concerned the proxy voting is now going to become a permanent feature of Congress, meaning that Congress is going to be permanently dysfunctional and fake in many ways,” Gallagher said. “People can pretend they’re actually doing their job of flying all over the country, raising money, and raising their social media profile.”

“Despite a few of my GOP colleagues giving in to the recklessness of Democrats — and I am reminding them of their obligation to stand strong — the vast majority of them believe proxy voting is destructive to the institution. So, we are proceeding with our litigation,” Roy said.