Congresswoman Cori Bush Introduces Resolution to Expel Members of Congress who Sought to Overturn Election and Incited Violent White Supremacist Attack on U.S. Capitol
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01) released the following statement introducing her first resolution, which will hold her Republican colleagues who attempted to overturn the election and incited a white supremacist attack on the United States Capitol accountable:
“Today, as my first legislative action, I introduced a resolution calling for the removal of the Members of Congress who have, for months, tried to steal this election and invalidate the votes of millions of people, especially Black, brown, and Indigenous voters,” said Congresswoman Cori Bush. “The dangerous consequences of their actions led to an attempted white supremacist coup that put thousands of lives in danger and left five people dead.
“The actions of the Republican lawmakers who tried to overturn the valid results of the 2020 elections must not only be condemned in the strongest possible terms, but I believe the members who attempted to disenfranchise voters and incited this violence must be removed from Congress.
“This is sedition. We must hold these Republicans accountable for their role in this insurrection at our nation’s Capitol as part of a racist attempt to overturn the election results. There must be consequences, and I am proud to be leading 47 of my colleagues in introducing this legislation, which would initiate the appropriate investigations for removal.
“Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution posits that no individual can serve in the House of Representatives who has engaged in disloyalty or sedition against the United States. There is no place in the People’s House for these heinous actions. I firmly believe that these members are in breach of their sworn Oath of Office to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. They must be held accountable.”
Congresswoman Bush’s resolution would call for expulsion under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. If resolved, the House Committee on Ethics would investigate and issue a report on, whether any and all actions taken by Members of the 117th Congress who sought to overturn the 2020 presidential election violated their Oath of Office to uphold the Constitution or the rules of the House of Representatives, and should face sanction, including exclusion from the House of Representatives. Additionally, the resolutions calls on the House of Representatives to condemn all targeted and malicious efforts to disenfranchise Black, brown and Indigenous voters.
To view the resolution, click here.
The legislation is cosponsored by 47 Members, including Alma Adams (NC-12), Nanette Barragán (CA-44) Jamaal Bowman (NY-16), Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), Judy Chu (CA-27), David Cicilline (RI-01) Jim Cooper (TN-05), Gerry Connolly (VA-11), Danny Davis (IL-06), Val B. Demings (FL-10), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Dwight Evans (PA-03), Jesús García (IL-04), Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), Alcee Hastings (FL-20), Steven Horsford (NV-04), Jared Huffman (CA-02), Sara Jacobs (CA-53), Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr., (GA-04), Mondaire Jones (NY-17), Kai Kahele (HI-02), Ann Kirkpatrick (AZ-02), Barbara Lee (CA-13), Ted Lieu (CA-33), Jerry McNerney (CA-09), Gwen Moore (WI-04), Marie Newman (IL-03), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Bill Pascrell (NJ-09), Donald Payne (NY-10), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Bobby Rush (IL-01), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Jackie Speier (CA-14), Albio Sires (NJ-08), Mark Takano (CA-41), Rashida Tlaib (MI-13), Ritchie Torres (NY-15), Juan Vargas (CA-52), Nydia Velazquez (NY-07), Nikema Williams (GA-05), Frederica Wilson (FL-24)
The legislation is endorsed by more than 150 national and grassroots organizations, including Color of Change, the Equal Justice Society, NARAL Pro-Choice America, Action Center for Race & the Economy, Catholic Network US, Center for Popular Democracy, Jewish Voice for Peace, Sunrise Movement, Demos, Greenpeace USA, Union of Concerned Scientists, United We Dream, Movement 4 Black Lives, MoveOn, Win Without War, and People’s Action.
“The last four years of this administration have devastated the safety and wellbeing of vulnerable communities across the country, but Trump alone did not get us to this point,” said Rashad Robinson, President of Color Of Change. “The Republican Party and their corporate enablers have paved the way for extremists to build power and raise money online, exercise violence and intimidation offline. Straight out of the gate, newly sworn-in Rep. Cori Bush is already showing up for Black Americans by introducing legislation to hold elected officials accountable for using their platforms to incite violence. We wholly endorse Rep. Bush’s legislation and urge Members of Congress to sanction and remove their colleagues who created this chaos.”
“We support Congresswoman Cori Bush’s resolution calling for the expulsion of those members of Congress who disputed the election results,” said Maurice BP-Weeks, Co-Executive Director of Action Center for Race & the Economy. “Rep. Bush’s work represents the type of leadership Black, Brown and Indigenous people need in the ongoing fight to make America a real democracy. The Republican leaders that have supported this chaos must be held to account and face consequences for their actions.”
“The Equal Justice Society strongly condemns the white supremacist insurrection that attempted to overturn the results of a free and fair election and to defy the will of the American people,” said the Equal Justice Society. “No one is above the law – and we demand that the actions of elected representatives involved in efforts to maliciously target and disenfranchise Black, Brown, Asian American, and Indigenous voters be condemned and investigated to the fullest extent of the law. A democracy of the people, by the people and for the people will not tolerate sedition or organized insurrection, led by the outgoing commander-in-chief.
“Last week's events at the U.S. Capitol were an unconscionable attack on every single one of us and our democracy,” said NARAL Pro-Choice America. “This is an extension of decades of extremism from the anti-choice, anti-freedom movement, determined to do everything possible to halt social progress and maintain white patriarchal control. Every elected official who played a part in fomenting white supremacy and this violent assault on our democracy should be expelled from office, including Donald Trump.”
"This attack was the direct result of Donald Trump’s repeated assaults on democracy, provocations to violence, and overt support for white supremacy,” said Win Without War. “If this is allowed to go unpunished, we fear it will not be the last time that fascists walk the halls of Congress. For healing to begin, there must first be justice."
“This white supremacist, anti-democratic attack on representative government was carefully and intentionally coordinated by Trump and many others on the right wing in order to prevent every vote from being counted”, said Greenpeace USA. “It is a desperate attempt by the violent right wing to hold on to power at all costs. Those responsible must be held accountable."
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Congresswoman Cori Bush represents Missouri’s First Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives. She serves on the House Judiciary Committee and the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. She is also a Deputy Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and a proud member of the Congressional Black Caucus. She is a registered nurse, single mother, and an ordained pastor. Following the murder of Michael Brown Jr. by a now-terminated Ferguson police officer, she became a civil rights activist and community organizer fighting for justice for Black lives on the streets of Missouri and across the country.