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Dozens of houses Republicans and their employees marched unmasked out of the House to the Senate to protest the new lower house mask mandate.
Lawmakers and their employees traveled across the Capitol on Thursday to protest Capitol Police asking officers to arrest staff members and visitors who do not wear masks and refuse to leave the house.
Members of Congress and Republican staff protest the new mask mandate in the House chamber on July 29, 2021.
(Luke Ball)
Ahead of the migration, Representative Chip Roy, R-Texas, proposed adjourning the House in protest against the mandate Republicans said came from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
CAPITOL POLICE ARRESTED STAFF AND VISITORS NOT WEARING MASKS AFTER THE NEW HOUSE MANDATE
Roy was joined by about 50 by colleagues in the House, including Representatives Madison Cawthorn, RN.C., Kat Cammack, R-Fla., and Byron Donalds, R-Fla.
“Congressman Roy put it succinctly on the floor of the House on Wednesday: ‘We have a crisis on our border and we are playing football with mask warrants in the people’s house,'” a porter said. Roy spoke to Fox News in an email.
“The fact that President Pelosi is willing to arrest staff members who have been vaccinated for failing to meet her mask mandate while the border remains wide open tells you all you need to know,” they continued. “It’s not a question of science. It’s a question of politics and control.”
Cawthorn told Fox News in a statement Thursday that Republicans who left the House to protest the mask’s mandate “have taken a firm stand on individual liberty.”
“With the majority of Americans, we have rejected President Pelosi’s totalitarian, hypocritical and arbitrary decision to require masks to be worn in the House,” Cawthorn said. “My staff should never fear being arrested for practicing individual responsibility.”
North Carolina Congressman Micah Bock’s communications director told Fox News on Thursday that he was arrested by a Capitol Hill police officer and barred from entering the Cannon House office building for do not wear a mask.
Bock said he was told by the officer that he had to “wear a mask to go through security” and that what he did after crossing was his “own concern”.
Republicans have targeted Pelosi for the mandate since the Capitol Police decision was announced Thursday.
“The Speaker of the House does not control the United States Capitol Police,” Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill previously told Fox News. “We weren’t aware of the note until it was reported to the press.”
Capitol Hill Police told Fox News in an email Thursday that “there is no reason for anyone to be arrested.”
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“Anyone who does not follow the rules will be asked to wear a mask or to leave the scene,” Capitol police said. “The department’s requirement for officers to wear masks is for their health and safety.”
A similar rule has already been in place. The Constitution gives members of Congress the privilege of certain arrests on Capitol Hill, such as in cases of illegal entry. So far, there is no such mandate from the Senate side.
Washington DC announced he would resume his indoor mask tenure Saturday to reflect federal guidelines.
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