House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday called on Speaker Paul Ryan to “turn on this microphone” on the House floor, which was shut off after Democrats broke the rules by taking over the chamber earlier in the day.
“This is a courtesy that we ask,” Pelosi said in the chamber.
Democrats have begun a “sit-in” on the House floor in order to demand a vote on gun control legislation, saying they won’t allow any other legislative business until Ryan agrees to schedule the vote. The legislation, such as a ban on weapons sales to individuals on the terror watch list, would likely fail given GOP concerns that the proposal violates due process rights.
The lawmakers have to shout because GOP leaders cut the microphones and turned off the cameras, as is their right under House rules. That GOP decision has led to complaints that the day-long protest can’t be seen or heard on CSPAN, which broadcasts the House and Senate floors from committee rooms, but doesn’t control the cameras.
“What would be the reason that the Republican majority in the House is saying, ‘Well we can’t remove you physically — well maybe they will — but we’re going to turn off the microphones?'” Pelosi asked.
Pelosi did the same thing, however, when roles were reversed in 2008 and she was the House speaker. When GOP lawmakers refused to adjourn for the August recess in order to press for a vote on offshore drilling, Democratic leadership cut the microphones and turned off the lights in the House chamber.
Reporters were also kicked out of the speaker’s lobby adjacent to the House chamber, where interviews with lawmakers routinely take place.
“You’re not covering this, are you?” a senior Democratic aide asked Politico in 2008.
