“Proxy voting is an unconstitutional attack on a functioning Congress – allowing members to avoid their responsibility to meet in DC to do their job,” Roy said in a statement to POLITICO after Tuesday’s meeting, citing the new rules that Democrats have implemented since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
“But even some of my Republican colleagues are now accomplices and have given in to the Democrats’ recklessness,” he continued. “If, like me, you believe it is unconstitutional – and wrong – then you shouldn’t do that, even if it is difficult.” Roy added that he is reminding Republicans “of their obligation to stay strong”.
Congressman Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Although he opposed the idea of proxy voting, he later argued during the meeting that Republicans are putting themselves at a political disadvantage if they do not use the system, especially with such a restricted system. Chamber and an agenda that changes frequently during the pandemic.
“I think it’s wrong, but it’s a fact of life,” said Bacon, who represents a key district in the swing. “We can win some votes. You have to use this to your advantage. “
“We are being played,” he added. “About that, [Speaker Nancy Pelosi] is gaining an advantage. “
But Republican House leader Kevin McCarthy sided with Roy on Tuesday and expressed his dissatisfaction with the proxy vote, noting that House Republicans have spent $ 500,000 on their lawsuit so far, the sources said. More than a dozen Republicans have nominated someone else to vote on their behalf while participating in CPAC, including representatives Jim Banks (Ind.), Madison Cawthorn (NC), Lauren Boebert (Colorado) and Matt Gaetz (Florida).
Earlier this year, McCarthy gave his members permission to use proxy voting immediately after the January 6 Capitol riot, as some lawmakers were chased at airports and other public spaces. However, he told Republican Party members that they had decided to vote by proxy to remove their names from the process so as not to undermine the party’s legal efforts.
Democrats instituted the voting method to limit lawmakers’ travel and increase security precautions during the pandemic. The Republican Party immediately began to fight against the historic change of rules, arguing that proxy voting was unconstitutional and could permanently damage the institution.
Still, as Democrats have repeatedly extended the use of the system, Republicans’ desire to fight the proxy vote has significantly decreased. Now there are only 21 Republicans left in the process – against 160 Republican plaintiffs when it was first opened last May. (Twenty-seven of these members have since left Congress.)
Republicans going to Florida for the CPAC is just the latest example of lawmakers using the voting method for reasons not necessarily related to the pandemic or security. In May, Republicans criticized two House Democrats for voting by proxy on the same day the pair tried to attend the SpaceX launch in Florida, although the event was rescheduled.
Gaetz, for his part, spoke publicly in favor of remote voting. He argued in a Washington Examiner op-ed in November, that the practice restricts the influence of lobbyists and allows lawmakers to spend more time in their respective districts with their constituents.
“I support remote voting because we are better off as public servants when we spend more time with the public we were elected to serve,” wrote Gaetz.
The issue has increasingly become a point of contention within the Chamber’s GOP. Last year, several Republicans who retired – including former MPs Paul Mitchell of Michigan and Francis Rooney of Florida – provoked the proxy vote. Rooney was even expelled from the Republican Party Steering Committee for his routine absence from the Capitol.
Meanwhile, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) – who is still in the process of the Republican Party and continues to vehemently oppose proxy voting – said he even refused to vote on behalf of his colleagues, which he scoffed at did his “some enemies. ”To use the voting system in the Chamber’s plenary, legislators need to send a letter to the Chamber’s clerk and designate someone as their attorney.
“I refused some people,” said Burchett, “because it would be hypocritical on my part.”