SpaceX and the House of Representatives shared something in common last week.
Both scrubbed their respective launches.
SpaceX and NASA intended to send Americans into outer space from U.S. soil for the first time in nine years. But weather forced a scrub of the launch.
Just hours later, the House had to scrub a vote on a bill to renew controversial FISA programs.
Republicans accused Democrats of diluting the vote of a member and their constituents. McCarthy suggested that the process would rob “48 million people” of a voice on the House floor.
During an appearance on Fox News, McCarthy argued the gambit endangered “the Constitution to make sure Pelosi has more power.”
Democrats argued the Republicans presented a smokescreen.
“You don’t want us to meet,” charged House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., in a fiery floor speech directed at Republicans.
Hoyer then took a swipe at President Trump.
“And the man who would be king doesn’t want us to meet,” thundered Hoyer. “The men who met in that room in Philadelphia had had enough of kings.”
The Democrats who didn’t attend in person explained why they opted out of coming to Capitol Hill.
“I have an elderly mother, 79 and (with) Alzheimer’s who I have a caregiver for. In concern (for) her health and concern from what we’re hearing from public health officials on limiting travel, I made a decision to allow myself to vote by proxy,” said Rep. Nanette Barragan, D-Calif.
Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Texas, conveyed a similar story.
“My wife has had two heart surgeries and it’s really her health that I’m most concerned with,” said Vela. “And now that we’re allowed to do this by proxy, I would prefer to mitigate that risk.”
Both Barragan and Vela tapped Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Arizona, to serve as their proxies.
“The key is to make sure you’re in touch with your proxy to make sure that neither of you have technological issues during the process,” said Vela. “And, that they actually follow your instructions.”
Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., lives only about 15 minutes away from the U.S. Capitol, across the Potomac River in Alexandria, VA. As a result, nine members tapped Beyer to deliver their proxy votes on the floor.
Beyer engineered a system which he described as “triple redundancy” to serve as a colleague’s stand-in on the floor. Those voting by proxy would call Beyer on his House-issued cell phone and tell the Virginia Democrat how they intended to vote. Then those voting in absentia would send an email, from their official House account to Beyer’s official email account. After that, the chief of staff for the absent member would follow up with Beyer’s chief of staff.
Members serving as proxies on the floor must do the bidding of those members back in their districts.
“There’s a relationship of mutual trust,” said Beyer, noting he often dined with one of his proxies and played bridge with another.
Republicans continued to raise hackles as to whether “phoning in” your vote comported with the Constitution. But political scholar Darrell West of the Brookings Institution believes the Founders would have been ok with proxy voting.
“They knew all about disease. There were smallpox infestations in the 18th and 19th centuries. So I think they would understand this is an extraordinary period. A major pandemic where health considerations are paramount,” said West.
Still, Republicans targeted some Democrats who voted by proxy. McCarthy specifically went after Rep. Charlie Crist, D-Fla.
In his letter requesting leave, Crist wrote to Clerk of the House Cheryl Johnson “I am physically unable to attend proceedings.” But then Crist tweeted he planned to attend the SpaceX launch. McCarthy noted that the launch wasn’t even in Crist’s district.
Nor was there any launch. Nor FISA vote.
“Maybe we should have just scrubbed the whole week,” said one House aide.
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