OPINION:
Renegade Republicans have once again thrown the House of Representatives into chaos. On Tuesday, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, Florida Republican, and eight of her colleagues joined every Democrat in an attempt to seize control of the national agenda.
It only takes a shift of four votes to turn the Republican majority into a minority, encouraging some members to consider how they might harness that leverage to their personal benefit.
Ms. Luna’s cause is bringing back proxy voting so congressional mothers can stay in their home states and raise their newborns without having to show up at the Capitol to collect their $174,000 yearly salary. Supporting the raising of children by their mothers is a good cause.
Larger issues are at play. Ms. Luna teamed up with Democrats and used a tool meant for the minority, a discharge petition, to advance her rule, which never uses the words “mother” or “woman.” The liberal-friendly language allows a “spouse” to stay home for three months, like when Pete Buttigieg went AWOL as transportation secretary at the beginning of President Biden’s administration.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Republican, blasted the proposal: “As a mom, I know all about seasons of life. If you aren’t capable of doing the job your constituents sent you to do, then you should step aside and let someone else do it.”
Even for those unwilling to let others do the job, alternatives exist. There’s a tradition of fiscal conservative congressmen living out of their congressional offices. Since 2018, the Senate has explicitly allowed newborns on the Senate floor, and the House has never told anyone babies aren’t welcome. The House offers child care services to all employees.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is willing to expand these accommodations. So far, that hasn’t been enough for the rebels who insist the House must bend to their personal desires. It would be easy for Mr. Johnson to shrug his shoulders and give in to the malcontents, but he knows better. “It would open a Pandora’s box,” he told reporters.
During the COVID-19 panic, Speaker Nancy Pelosi opened the box by allowing congressmen to work from home. This was an ideal policy for the party that wanted to eliminate restraints on voting.
It was also a policy that could be bad for mothers. In February, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in a case that struck down the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act specifically because it passed the House with proxy votes.
As U.S. District Judge Wesley Hendrix explained in his lower-court opinion, “For over 235 years, Congress understood the Constitution’s Quorum Clause to require a majority of members of the House or Senate to be physically present to constitute the necessary quorum to pass legislation.”
Thus, proxy voting would jeopardize every bill the House passes to implement President Trump’s agenda. That’s why Mr. Johnson is playing hardball, coming up with anything he can to stop Ms. Luna’s rule change, including sending members home for a week.
The 5th Circuit has yet to rule, but the peril remains even if it rejects the lower court’s reasoning. Democrats will find willing jurists in other circuits who will happily cite proxy voting as an excuse to sabotage the Republican agenda. Those judges would be right.
If Mr. Trump wants to rescue tax cuts, election reform and judicial reform from this prospect, he should tell Ms. Luna to stand down.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.