Subscribe for free to eliminate ads
Advertisement
A Republican member of the House has put forward a resolution to formally reprimand New Jersey Democrat LaMonica McIver, who was indicted in May on allegations of obstructing federal officers during a visit to an immigration center. Representative Clay Higgins from Louisiana is calling for McIver’s removal from the House Homeland Security Committee, citing reports from Fox News.
Advertisementads
Advertisement
The resolution claims that McIver’s ongoing role on the committee poses a “significant conflict of interest” because of the pending charges against her. A federal grand jury charged McIver with three counts, including assaulting and impeding officers during an incident on May 9 at the Delaney Hall Immigration Facility in Newark. The resolution refers to House regulations requiring members to conduct themselves in a manner that brings honor to the institution, arguing that McIver’s behavior falls short of this expectation.
Advertisement
At the time, McIver and two fellow lawmakers were involved in both a protest and a formal oversight inspection. The Justice Department reports that Newark Mayor Ras Baraka entered a restricted section of the facility. When federal agents attempted to detain him and ordered him to leave, McIver is said to have intervened.
Advertisement
Prosecutors assert that she wrapped her arms around the mayor, struck an officer with her forearm, and grabbed another agent. McIver has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for trial on November 10. After her arraignment, she accused the Trump administration and its supporters of weaponizing the Department of Justice for political purposes.
Advertisement
Advertisement
She framed the matter as political intimidation, claiming that the federal government and the DOJ were being exploited to target critics. In response to the censure effort, McIver who is Black accused Higgins in a statement to Axios of being a bigot seeking attention.
She further asserted that the resolution’s true goal was to remove her from the committee that oversees the Department of Homeland Security and to discredit her for performing her oversight duties. She wished Higgins “good luck” in his efforts. Higgins told Axios he postponed introducing the resolution until after Congress’s five-week recess to allow Democrats the chance to act on removing McIver from the committee themselves.
Advertisement
Advertisement
House Republicans have a policy requiring indicted members to step down from all committee assignments, whereas Democrats only mandate the resignation of indicted lawmakers from leadership positions. Higgins stated that McIver should not serve on the committee responsible for oversight and voting authority over the federal branch she faces charges related to.
Thus, in June, federal authorities disclosed more information about the brief detention of New York state Democrat Brad Lander, a mayoral candidate for New York City. According to reports, Lander was taken into custody for reportedly assaulting an ICE officer who was trying to stop a suspected illegal immigrant from being apprehended. Lander asked for a judicial warrant to support the arrest.
Lander reportedly shouted that officials lack the authority to arrest U.S. citizens without such a warrant. Fellow Democrat and Squad member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defended Lander’s actions, stating he was within his legal rights.
The Washington Times noted that immigration enforcement inside the country is generally a civil matter, punishable by deportation, with ICE agents operating under administrative rather than judicial warrants.
Meanwhile, Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) defended his recent confrontation with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem regarding immigration enforcement and National Guard deployment in Los Angeles. Padilla was briefly handcuffed but was neither arrested nor detained.
Advertisement
Share the article to spread the truth
