(PartiallyPolitics.com) On Wednesday the House Natural Resources Committee’s first meeting of the year became tense as a Democratic member put forth an amendment that would ban lawmakers from bringing firearms into its hearing room.
Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., called his amendment “sadly necessary” as there were safety issues for the members of the committee. He added that the Republican-controlled Rules Committee had removed a previous provision that the Democrats had established which had prohibited firearms from being carried into hearing rooms and committees.
When the GOP took over the House one of the first actions taken was the removal of the magnetometers from the House Chamber. The devices had been installed outside the House chamber following the Jan. 6, Capitol riot by former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Huffman noted that members and their staff already have to abide by a law that prohibits them from” carrying guns into the hearing rooms and conference rooms of this Capitol,” with firearms currently only being allowed in their offices. He added that despite this there are members of Congress who appear to believe that the current rules do not apply to them.
Fellow committee member Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., who had previously gone viral for carrying a firearm into the Capitol, called the move an “anti-member safety amendment” and said that it was a “political stunt.” She added that the increased number of threats towards members of Congress, makes this an even worse time to demand that members of Congress should lose their constitutional right to protect themselves.
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