Rep. McGovern silenced on House floor after mentioning Trump’s trial

Politics

Rep. Jim McGovern’s words led to debate halting for about an hour before they were stricken from the record.

House Rules Committee Ranking Member Rep. Jim McGovern. Jacquelyn Martin/AP

Comments that Rep. Jim McGovern, who represents a broad swath of central and western Massachusetts, made on the House floor about former President Donald Trump’s legal troubles were stricken from the record Thursday after about an hour of delay.

McGovern, ranking member of the Rules Committee, made his comments during a debate on a set of GOP bills regarding cryptocurrency and non-citizen voting, per Axios.

“We have a presumptive nominee for president facing 88 felony counts, and we’re being prevented from even acknowledging it,” he said. “These are not ‘alternative facts,’ these are real facts.”

McGovern listed charges Trump is facing over allegedly covering up a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, for allegedly conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, and for allegedly stealing classified information. He also mentioned how Trump was found liable for sexually abusing and defaming E. Jean Carroll in civil court.

“And yet, in the Republican-controlled House, it’s OK to talk about the trial, but you have to call it a sham,” he said, referring to Trump’s current trial in the hush money coverup case.

Rep. Erin Houchin of Indiana immediately called for his words to be “taken down,” or stripped from the record.

McGovern: And a jury has already found him liable for rape in a civil court.

Houchin: Take down his words. I demand that his words be taken down. pic.twitter.com/jRFNImfcyP

— Acyn (@Acyn) May 22, 2024

This caused a delay of about an hour as McGovern, Houchin and Rep. Jerry Carl of Alabama spoke with their teams. Carl was presiding over the floor at the time. Finally, Carl ruled that McGovern’s comments violated rules against insulting sitting presidents, as it also extends to presumptive presidential nominees, per Axios.

Later on, Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández of New Mexico read some of McGovern’s planned remarks into the record.

Thanks to my dear friend and Rules Committee colleague @RepTeresaLF, who read my remarks about the Farm Bill into the record after Republicans silenced me for telling the truth.

They can try to shut us up on the floor, but they will never silence the fight to #EndHungerNow. pic.twitter.com/6JLLUDis6N

— Rep. Jim McGovern (@RepMcGovern) May 23, 2024

In a social media post, McGovern cited a Washington Post article about the civil case and the delineation between “sexual assault” and “rape.”