Democrats rebel over Nancy Pelosi’s order for House to end emergency recess on May 4 and call nation’s highest-profile return to work ‘dangerous’
- Democratic House members are rebelling against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s plans to bring the House back into session on May 4
- Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a former Democratic National Committee chair, called the plan ‘dangerous,’ according to Politico
- Members were advised that the House would be called back to Washington on a conference call on Monday
- Chiefs of Staff told Politico that they were blindsided by the news, as Pelosi’s office had cancelled a planning call with them earlier Monday
- House Democrats are pushing ahead with a plan to allow proxy building, but Republicans already expressed they’re against such a move
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
House Democrats are rebelling against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s plans to bring the House back into session on May 4, while many states still have lockdown orders in place due to the coronavirus crisis.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida Democrat who previously led the Democratic National Committee, called the move ‘dangerous,’ according to Politico.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer had informed the caucus of the scheduling update on a Monday afternoon call.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to bring the House back into session next Monday. When her No. 2 told the caucus this on Monday, the Democratic leadership faced backlash from its members
Politico reported that Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the former chair of the Democratic National Committee, spoke up and called the move ‘dangerous.’ A number of female lawmakers brought up childcare also being an issue
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is followed through the Capitol by reporters sporting masks during last week’s vote
Republican Rep. Jim Jordan refused to wear a mask for his return to Capitol Hill last week for another coronavirus relief bill
Members were asked to keep social distance away from their peers when they returned to Washington last week to cast votes
‘Nancy and I have talked a couple of times today,’ Hoyer said, according to Politico’s account. ‘We have decided we will come back on the 4th.’
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell already announced that the Senate would come back into session next Monday.
‘Look, it doesn’t make sense for the Senate to sit on the sidelines while a lot of other people are going to work everyday and trying to get us through this,’ McConnell had told Politico in an interview.
Hoyer’s announcement was immediately met with resistance, with members includings Reps. Lucille Roybal-Allard of California, Susan Wild of Pennsylvania and Veronica Escobar of Texas speaking up, according to Politico’s account.
Some asked how they were supposed to deal with childcare with schools across the country closed and with Hoyer suggesting they might be needed in Washington for an extended stay.
Hoyer said the House could be in session for two weeks.
Chiefs of staff told the publication that they were blindsided by the announcement, as their weekly call with Pelosi’s office had been cancelled earlier Monday.
House member are seen wearing masks during a vote last week. The House has implemented staggered voting so members aren’t congregating on the floor en masse
Congress is expected to start working on a CARES 2 package, which would be the fifth piece of legislation to help stem the economic bleeding brought on by the coronavirus crisis.
House Democrats, which hold the majority in the House, have initiated some safety protocols to allow for better social distancing on Capitol Hill.
Instead of every member gathering on the House floor for votes, voting is being done in waves.
And they’re moving ahead with plans to allow proxy voting, which would open up the door for colleagues to vote for one another if some members are stuck out of town.
Republicans have expressed they would be against such a plan.