An amendment filed by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-FL, at the House Judiciary Committee to recite the Pledge of Allegiance before meetings has passed following heated debate between members.
“I offered this amendment to the judiciary rules two years ago and it was defeated and I’m very optimistic we would have a different outcome today,” he said.
Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-NY, opposed the amendment, of course, saying, “I would oppose it simply on the grounds members know we pledge allegiance every day on the floor and I don’t know why we should pledge allegiance twice in the same day to show how patriotic we are.”
Rep. David Cicilline, D-RI, offered an additional amendment: “The Pledge shall not be led by an individual who supported an insurrection against the government of the United States in any way.”
Gaetz responded, “My concern would be if your definition of insurrection is objecting to electors then there would be many Democrats on the committee that wouldn’t be eligible to lead the pledge.”
Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-TX, said that saying the pledge of allegiance should not be controversial.
“We should be saying the pledge every single day, every single morning and every single committee,” he said.
After heated debate, Cicilline’s amendment failed. Gaetz’s amendment passed 39-0.
