House Resolution 719 should have passed unanimously.
Titled “Honoring the life and legacy of Charles ‘Charlie’ James Kirk,” this bill’s language should have offended no one. While the House adopted it on Friday morning, 310-58, Republicans did the heavy lifting. The full legislative language is available here and here. Excerpts follow:
Resolved, That the House of Representatives—
(1) condemns in the strongest possible terms the assassination of Charles “Charlie” James Kirk, and all forms of political violence;
(2) commends and honors the dedicated law enforcement and emergency personnel for their tireless efforts in finding the suspect responsible for the assassination of Charlie Kirk…
(3) extends its deepest condolences and sympathies to Charlie Kirk’s family…
(4) honors the life, leadership, and legacy of Charlie Kirk, whose steadfast dedication to the Constitution, civil discourse, and Biblical truth inspired a generation to cherish and defend the blessings of liberty; and
(5) calls upon all Americans — regardless of race, party affiliation, or creed — to reject political violence, recommit to respectful debate, uphold American values, and respect one another as fellow Americans.
This benign, borderline-anodyne resolution passed without objection — at least among Republicans. All 215 who voted supported this measure. (Four did not vote.) All told, 98.2 percent of the Republican Conference voted Yea.
Among Democrats, not so much.
Ninety-five (44.6 percent) voted Yea, including their leader, Hakeem Jeffries of New York, and such prominent lawmakers as Texas’s Henry Cuellar, Michigan’s Debbie Dingell, Maryland’s Steny Hoyer, New York’s Jerrold Nadler, and Maryland’s Jamie Raskin. Good on them.
But 58 House Democrats (27.2 percent) said Nay on Roll Call Vote No. 282. Two days before Kirk’s state funeral in greater Phoenix, almost five dozen Democrats turned their thumbs down on paying respects to Kirk and his principles, empathizing with his family, and decrying political violence. Henceforth, the American people can assume that all 58 of these radical Leftists are A-OK with political violence.
The House Democrats’ brand-new Assassination Caucus includes South Carolina’s James Clyburn, New Jersey’s Robert Menendez, Massachusetts’ Seth Moulton, New York’s Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and California’s Maxine Waters. (RELATED: AOC Becomes De Facto House Minority Leader)
By voting present, these jellyfish chose to be silent extras rather than heroes or villains in this vital American drama.
At least these odious bums took a stand, reprehensible as it was. Another 38 House Democrats (17.8 percent) lacked the guts to respect or repudiate Charlie Kirk and either spurn or support political violence. By voting present, these jellyfish chose to be silent extras rather than heroes or villains in this vital American drama. These invertebrates included Texas’s Lloyd Doggett and Californians John Garamendi, Ro Khanna, and Brad Sherman. Also on this List of Shame: My congressman, Dan Goldman of New York. Sorry about that. (RELATED: An Open Letter to the American Left)
Another 22 Democrats (10.3 percent) did not vote on this legislation at 10:53 a.m. But only two Democrats failed to vote on a budgetary bill, namely Roll Call Vote No. 281 at 10:44 a.m.
During the intervening nine minutes before the Charlie Kirk vote, it remains a mystery how many of these 20 additional Democrats suddenly took ill, left town, or simply ducked and hid — too cowardly even to wimp out and vote Present. Democrats who voted on the Continuing Resolution but went AWOL on Kirk included Texas’s Joaquin Castro, Tennessee’s Steve Cohen, California’s Nancy Pelosi and Eric Swalwell, and New York’s Richie Torres.
Four Republicans voted on the budget language but soon missed the Kirk vote: Georgia’s Mike Collins, Arizona’s Elijah Crane, Arkansas’ Eric A. “Rick” Crawford, and Kansas’s Derek Schmidt.
Add up these Democrats — large groups of whom fled in four different directions — and only 95 in their 213-member Conference voted for Charlie Kirk’s memory and against political violence. That’s just 44.6 percent.
Conversely, 118 of 213 actively voted against this resolution, chickened out and voted Present, or somehow failed to do their jobs and at least show up. These factions totaled a clear majority: 55.4 percent of House Democrats.
So, when it came to grieving for Charlie Kirk and denouncing political violence, the final tally was:
Republicans: 98.2 to 1.8 percent
Democrats: 44.6 to 55.4 percent
The American people should remember this the next time Democrats growl their “both sides” Big Lie.
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Deroy Murdock is a Manhattan-based Fox News Contributor.