Republican lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives are criticizing the 13 GOP members who voted in support of United States President Joe Biden's $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill and are calling to punish them by stripping them of their committee assignments.
A report revealed that some GOP lawmakers were determined to penalize the 13 Republicans that supported Biden's infrastructure bill. Many of whom are ranking members or senior Republicans on House committees or subcommittees.
Massive Infrastructure Bill
As of Tuesday morning, however, the report did not detail what degree of support the proposal might have. Additionally, under House rules, a party's steering committee has the authority to recommend that a lawyer be removed from committee assignments but is subject to a vote by the caucus and the full House.
The penalty of being forced from committee assignments is a punishment that has been previously reserved for lawmakers who have been accused of crimes or have been involved with extremism, Business Insider reported.
The list of supporting Republicans include Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska who said that there would be consequences whether or not the bill was approved. He said that he voted in support of the bill because he felt it was right.
West Virginia's Rep. David McKinley said he voted for the bill after hearing stories about children in the region sitting in parking lots because their homes did not have reliable internet connections. McKinley said he is in support of the infrastructure bill to give those kids a chance for a better future.
Rep. Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, who is among the 10 House Republicans that voted to impeach former United States President Donald Trump after the events of the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot, also supports the bill. The official is also set to retire and announced in September that he would not be seeking reelection, Fox Business reported.
Criticizing Supporting Members
Critics of the 13 Republicans who supported the infrastructure bill include former President Trump who had a speech on Monday where he expressed his disappointment with the GOP members. The event was attended by one of the officials who voted for the bill, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis from New York, who appeared to be shaken while listening among the audience.
Trump was joined by other Republicans in criticizing the 13 GOP members, including Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz who is calling for the ouster of Rep. John Katko of New York from the House Homeland Security Committee for voting yes on the bill.
At the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) dinner, Trump was seen being friendly with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy who voted no to the infrastructure bill. The situation came as a GOP lawmaker confirmed that the Republican businessman has been critical of McCarthy's leadership.
The other Republicans who voted in support of the infrastructure bill include Tom Reed, Andrew Garbarino, Birna Fitzpatrick, Adam Kinzinger, Don Young, Fred Upton, Jeff Van Drew, and Chris Smith, some of whom are popular among members of the party the New York Post reported.
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