AOC Brags about Blocking SCOTUS Security Bill after Kavanaugh Assassination Plot
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) bragged about her efforts to block legislation that would increase security for Supreme Court justices shortly after authorities foiled an alleged assassination attempt against Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
Ocasio-Cortez posted a video to her Instagram Stories on Thursday in which she claims to walk to the floor of the House of Representatives to object to unanimous consent for legislation, Newsweek reported.
The progressive “Squad” member said in the video that Thursday was a “fly out day” when many members of Congress left Washington, D.C., for their home districts.
“Fly out days are also days of maximum hijinks from party leadership, both Democratic and Republican Party leadership,” she said.
“I wake up this morning and I start to hear murmurs that there is going to be an attempt to pass the Supreme Court Supplemental Protection Bill the day after gun safety legislation for schools and kids and people is stalled,” she added.
She continued: “Oh, so we can pass protections for us and here easily, right? But we can’t pass protections for everyday people? I think not.”
The congresswoman’s video came one day after police detained 26-year-old Nicholas John Roske early Wednesday morning after he exited a taxi in front of Kavanaugh’s home in Maryland wearing black clothes, according to a criminal complaint. The man told authorities he called 911 because he was having suicidal thoughts. He told a dispatcher he had come “from California to kill a specific” Supreme Court justice, the affidavit said.
Authorities found a Glock 17 handgun with two magazines and ammunition, a tactical knife, pepper spray, zip ties, a hammer, a screwdriver, and other gear in Roske’s backpack.
He told authorities that he was motivated by the leaked majority draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that would overturn Roe v. Wade. He said he was contemplating “how to give his life purpose” when he decided to kill Kavanaugh after finding his address on the Internet, according to the complaint.
The Senate passed a bill on May 9 to provide around-the-clock security to the families of Supreme Court justices after the Dobbs draft leak sparked protests outside of the conservative justices’ homes. While the measure had bipartisan support in the Senate, it has stalled in the Democrat-controlled House as some Democrats have argued the enhanced protections should extend not only to the justices, but to others who work within the Court.
After House Democrats rejected a unanimous consent request on both Tuesday and Wednesday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) expressed frustration on the House floor.
“How many times do they have to be threatened?” he said, referring to the justices. “How many people have to be arrested with a gun outside their home?”
“What would have happened had he not called 911?” McCarthy said on Wednesday night. “He didn’t just have a gun. He had zip ties. But somehow you want to leave. This bill could be on the president’s desk right now.”
