House Speaker Kevin McCarthy flamed far-left Rep. Jamaal Bowman Monday after the Democrat pulled a fire alarm during a turbulent session of Congress over the weekend.
Bowman (D-NY) has insisted his Saturday activation of the clearly labeled fire alarm in the Cannon House Office Building was inadvertent, but McCarthy (R-Calif.) scoffed at the excuse.
“What’s interesting [is], if it really was just an accident, when the Capitol Police came to interview you, why would you lawyer up right away?” the speaker told “Fox and Friends”. “His behavior has been unbecoming.”
“If you have been a principal, you’ve had fire alarms and you’ve had children pull fire alarms,” added McCarthy. “So that’s where you go? To this childish action?”
Before entering politics, Bowman was a principal at Cornerstone Academy for Social Action in the Bronx, which threatens students with suspension or even expulsion for falsely pulling a fire alarm.
McCarthy stressed that he doesn’t believe Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) put the Bronx and Westchester rep up to the stunt.
“I do not believe Hakeem Jeffries would ever say to do that,” McCarthy replied when asked.
On Saturday, McCarthy gave Democrats very little time to parse through a stopgap spending bill to avert a partial government shutdown.
Jeffries seemingly stalled for time by speaking on the House floor for 52 minutes while Democrats combed through the 71-page bill to flag any poison pills.
Ultimately, all but one House Democrat opted to vote for the measure and it cleared the lower chamber 335-91, helping ensure the government is fully operational until Nov. 17.
Republicans including far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) alleged Bowman was resorting to nefarious methods to try and buy time.
The Democrat’s team has insisted that the ordeal was an innocent mistake.
“Congressman Bowman did not realize he would trigger a building alarm as he was rushing to make an urgent vote,” his chief of staff, Sarah Iddrissu, wrote on social media. “The Congressman regrets any confusion.”
Meanwhile, Brooklyn and Staten Island Rep. Nicole Malliotakis pledged to introduce a resolution to expel Bowman from the lower chamber.
Some detractors, such as Greene, have also likened Bowman’s actions to that of the Capitol rioters, many of whom were charged with obstructing an official proceeding.
Allies such as progressive darling Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) have swooped to Bowman’s defense and countered that Republicans have declined to boot criminally indicted Rep. George Santos (R-NY).
Bowman sat for an interview with Capitol Police, who are investigating the matter. A House Administration Committee investigation into the incident is also underway.
Jeffries has been largely mum on the matter, saying Saturday that he was waiting to see the video of the incident before commenting.
Meanwhile, McCarthy is expected to face a GOP mutiny this week, as a handful of Republicans led by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) push to oust him from the speaker’s chair.