U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, who represents a portion of Westchester County north of New York City.Photo:Leigh Vogel/Getty
Leigh Vogel/Getty
Bowman, a second-term congressman, is now the third Democratic House member to be censured since Republicans took control of the chamber in January, turning a once-rare form of sanction into a familiar partisan tool.
A censure — essentially a formal rebuke of a representative’s actions — carries no punishment beyond public shaming, but risks influencing the court of public opinion come reelection time.
On Sept. 30, shortly before the House was to vote on an emergency funding bill to prevent a government shutdown, Bowman pulled a fire alarm in the Capitol, triggering an evacuation.
Critics were quick to suggest that he pulled the alarm intentionally to delay the vote, though Bowman insisted it was a mistake.
“Today, as I was rushing to make a vote, I came to a door that is usually open for votes but today would not open,” Bowman said in a statement after the incident. “I am embarrassed to admit that I activated the fire alarm, mistakenly thinking it would open the door. I regret this and sincerely apologize for any confusion this caused.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.
Bowman addressed rumors about the fire alarm directly, saying, “I want to be very clear, this was not me, in any way, trying to delay any vote. It was the exact opposite – I was trying urgently to get to a vote, which I ultimately did and joined my colleagues in a bipartisan effort to keep our government open.”
A resolution to censure Bowman was passed in the House on Thursday in a 214-191 vote that fell mostly along party lines. Bowman released a statement shortly after in which he decried House Republicans as “unserious and unproductive,” saying, “my colleagues have made it explicitly clear that they would rather relitigate already settled matters than do what we were sent here to do and legislate.”
Drew Angerer/Getty
source: people.com
