Debbie Wasserman Schultz files censure resolution against Texas Republican

South Florida Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz filed a censure resolution against Texas Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert on Tuesday after Gohmert said in a TV interview that “you’ve got to go to the streets” when a judge dismissed his lawsuit seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Wasserman Schultz said in her resolution that Gohmert’s comments to the pro-Trump TV network Newsmax on Jan. 1 are part of a “dangerous pattern of signaling to American citizens that they should consider using violent means to achieve their goals, including overthrowing the results of a legitimate democratic election.”

Wasserman Schultz said Gohmert’s words amount to an incitement of violence and demand a public rebuke from the House of Representatives.

“It should not be used lightly nor for mere political theater,” Wasserman Schultz said of the censure resolution. “The people’s House cannot stand by when someone incites or prods violence.”

Gohmert posted a video of his Newsmax interview on his Twitter page on Friday evening. He later said that his interview, which was conducted after a judge said his lawsuit against Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election results lacked standing, was not advocating for violence.

“I have not encouraged and unequivocally do not advocate for violence,” Gohmert said in a statement released after the interview. “The appropriate answer is courts and self-governing bodies resolving disputes as intended.”

Gohmert did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wasserman Schultz’s resolution.

Censuring a member of Congress is the second-harshest penalty that the House of Representatives can impose on a member after expulsion. Since 1832, 23 members have been censured by the House, the most recent being former New York Democratic Rep. Charles Rangel in 2010 after he used a rent-controlled building as his campaign headquarters, misused congressional letterhead for political fundraising and filed inaccurate tax returns.

If the censure vote is successful, the member must present themselves in the House chamber while the Speaker reads the resolution.

Wasserman Schultz said her resolution will be referred to committee and then will be brought to the House floor after next week’s congressional recess. Republicans could object to the resolution and prevent a full vote from taking place or allow the vote to occur.

Either way, Wasserman Schultz said Gohmert’s colleagues will be put on the record for his remarks.

“Our words matter when incendiary messages are uttered by a member of Congress,” Wasserman Schultz said. “Right now, right-wing militia hate groups are on their way to Washington and they’re being spurred to come here.”

Gohmert is among a group of more than 100 House Republicans who are expected to object to the Electoral College results Wednesday, a sure-to-fail process that will take place as pro-Trump rallies are scheduled throughout Washington. Members of Congress are advised to stay indoors and away from protesters.

It’s not clear whether Miami’s three Republicans in Congress, Reps. Carlos Gimenez and Mario Diaz-Balart and Rep.-elect Maria Elvira Salazar, will object to the results.

Wasserman Schultz said recent instances of violence against elected officials and members of Congress like Minority Whip Steve Scalise, who was shot by a left-wing extremist, and former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords, who was shot in the head by a right-wing extremist, show how rhetoric from elected officials can influence people to commit violent acts. She also noted that her office was targeted with pipe bombs through the mail in 2018 by a pro-Trump extremist.

“Instead of calming political tensions, Rep. Gohmert is pouring gas on our match-filled public square,” Wasserman Schultz said.