House Rejects Republican Effort to Censure Rep. Maxine Waters for Incitement of Violence
On Tuesday, the House of Representatives rejected a Republican resolution to censure congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif) for urging protestors “to get more confrontational” if former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was acquitted of the murder of George Floyd.
According to The Hill, Waters’ remarks were made ahead of the trial during her visit to Minnesota over the weekend. As the Chauvin trial was underway, the congresswoman was attending an anti-police brutality protest.
“We’ve got to get justice in this country, and we cannot allow these killings to continue,” she said. “We’ve got to stay on the street, and we’ve got to get more active. We’ve got to get more confrontational.
“We’ve got to make sure that they know that we mean business,” Waters contended.
Republicans criticized Waters for inciting violence with her words, in which Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) introduced a censure resolution against her.
The resolution’s text also cites comments from the Chauvin trial on Monday, where Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill warned the defense that Waters’ words could provide them with “something on appeal that may result in this whole trial being overturned.”
Chairwoman Waters’ actions are beneath the dignity of this institution.
They raised the potential for violence, directed lawlessness, and may have interfered with a co-equal branch of government.
I just introduced this censure resolution to hold her accountable. pic.twitter.com/cGuEFNNqZo
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) April 20, 2021
But Democrats argued that Republicans were being hypocritical over their outrage at Waters because many of them defended former President Donald Trump, who was accused of inciting violence during remarks prior to the attack on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6.
On Tuesday, the resolution failed to pass the House after lawmakers voted along party lines 216-210, with no defections from either side. Later that day, Chauvin was declared guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in Floyd’s death. Last year, Floyd’s death sparked national protests as well as violence across several U.S. cities.
In an interview with The Grio on Monday, Waters contended that her comments were not meant to incite violence.
“I talk about confronting the justice system, confronting the policing that’s going on, I’m talking about speaking up,” she explained. “I’m talking about legislation. I’m talking about elected officials doing what needs to be done to control their budgets and to pass legislation.”
The Democratic congresswoman came under fire in the past for similar comments. In 2018, Waters encouraged supporters to harass officials from the Trump administration regarding the separation of migrant families.
“If you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd,” she said at the time. “And you push back on them. And you tell them they’re not welcome anymore, anywhere.”
During remarks to a crowd in 2017, Waters said she would “go and take out Trump tonight.”
Related:
‘Pray for’ America: Christian Leaders React to the Derek Chauvin Verdict
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Rich Fury/Staff
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer. He is also the co-hosts of the For Your Soul podcast, which seeks to equip the church with biblical truth and sound doctrine Visit his blog Blessed Are The Forgiven.
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