House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said a Supreme Court decision not to consider the GOP’s effort to block proxy voting is a victory for Congress and public health, and she blasted Republicans for challenging a policy used by more than half their conference.
“Both the Constitution and more than a century of legal precedent make clear that the House is empowered to determine its own rules — and remote voting by proxy falls squarely within this purview,” the California Democrat said in a statement.
The high court on Monday announced it would not consider an appeal by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to reconsider his lawsuit against proxy voting.
House Democrats voted to allow proxy voting in May 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The rule allows each member to vote on behalf of up to 10 other lawmakers, which McCarthy has argued is unconstitutional and strips constituents of proper representation in Congress.
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The GOP pointed out that the change in the rules also allows staff the unprecedented authority to dictate a lawmaker’s proxy vote to another member if the absent lawmaker is unable to do it.
But Pelosi maintained the rule is needed for health reasons to avoid the spread of COVID-19.
Over the past year, Republicans who were initially resistant eventually joined in, and more than half the GOP conference has cast votes by proxy.
Pelosi slammed Republicans in a statement Monday for trying to challenge the rule legally.
“With this failed lawsuit, Republicans have worked to recklessly endanger the health of colleagues, staffers and institutional workers,” Pelosi said. “In doing so, they have fought harder to try to score political points than they have fought to help struggling families during the pandemic.”
Pelosi called the lawsuit “frivolous” and a “sad stunt.”
Proxy voting requires lawmakers to cite the pandemic when they use the procedure, but the policy has increasingly been employed by Republicans and Democrats who have other reasons for not being present in the Capitol for a vote, including family emergencies, vacations, convenience, and other health reasons.
