- Rep. Anna Paulina Luna said House Speaker Mike Johnson was blackmailed into squashing her resolution to allow young parents in Congress to vote remotely. She resigned from the House Freedom Caucus after stating she was “shattered” by fellow members’ actions.
- Luna said her resolution is pro-life and pro-family, saying it’s the closest thing members of Congress would get to a maternity leave.
- Johnson said the measure is unconstitutional, and that members of Congress must be present to vote and cannot use a proxy.
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Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., resigned from the House Freedom Caucus after accusing some of her fellow members of making threats and playing hardball politics to block her resolution that would allow young parents in Congress to vote remotely via proxy.
In a letter to her former caucus, she expressed dismay and disbelief. Luna also said she was “shattered” that fellow members would try to squash the bipartisan resolution that has the support of a majority of the House of Representatives. She also said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., was “blackmailed” into sending the resolution through the rules committee in an attempt to kill it.
Luna introduced the resolution along with Reps. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., and Brittany Pettersen, D-Colo. Supporters said there are more young parents than ever in Congress, and if they’re going to grow their families, they have to be able to keep working with an infant.
Johnson wouldn’t bring the bill up for a vote because he believes it’s unconstitutional. So, members started a discharge petition, which allows the rank-and-file to overrule the speaker and force a vote. They got 218 signatures from every political leaning, which is more than enough.
What did Luna’s statement say?
On Monday, March 31, Johnson sent Luna’s petition through the rules committee, which, on the surface, made it appear as though he was using the power of his gavel to stop it.
“In the Speaker’s defense, he is being blackmailed into doing this… but this behavior to force someone into doing something is categorically wrong and everything we are supposed to stand against,” Luna wrote in a letter to all House Republicans.
“I cannot remain in a group that would smear me as being against election integrity and extort the Speaker to derail a just cause,” Luna continued. “This is a disgraceful betrayal, a return to the manipulative tactics we have condemned, and the 119th Congress aimed to leave behind.”
Based on Luna’s account, Johnson was pressured into stopping the resolution in the way that he did. But he still opposed it and actively worked to prevent it from being approved.
Proxy voting began during COVID-19. Absent members were allowed to authorize another member to enter their vote on their behalf. Johnson said that should not happen again.
What is Johnson saying?
“The Republican Party is pro-family. We want to make it as easy as possible for young parents to be able to participate in the process. But proxy voting, in my view, is unconstitutional,” Johnson stated. “This is a deliberative body. You cannot deliberate with your colleagues if you’re out somewhere else.”
“Here’s the problem, if you create a proxy vote opportunity just for young parents, mothers and the fathers of those situations, then where is the limiting principle?” Johnson continued.
Luna had hoped to bring the resolution up for a vote as early as this week. Now, its future is uncertain, and despite a majority of the chamber signing a petition to support it, it may never get a vote.
