Tag: Louie Gohmert

‘Dumbest person’ Louie Gohmert mocked after asking if Forest Service can change ‘Earth’s orbit’

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Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) was mocked this week after he asked federal Forest Service officials if they could change the orbit of the Earth and moon.

Gohmert made the remarks during a House Natural Resources hearing. A video clip was shared by Forbes.

“I understand, from what’s been testified to the Forest Service and the [Bureau of Land Management], you want very much to work on the issue of climate change,” Gohmert said. “I was informed by the immediate past director of NASA that they found that the moon’s orbit is changing slightly and so is the Earth’s orbit around the sun. We know there’s been significant solar flare activities, and so, is there anything that the National Forest Service or [Bureau of Land Management] can do to change the course of the moon’s orbit or the Earth’s orbit around the sun? Obviously, that would have profound effects on our climate.” Continue reading.

Gohmert speaks at conference where QAnon supporters push for coup to oust Biden

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Donald Trump associates Michael Flynn and Sidney Powell were also in attendance at the conference in Texas.

Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) spoke at a conference over the weekend at which prominent QAnon conspiracy theorists advocated for a military coup to oust President Joe Biden, downplayed the violent Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and spread lies about the 2020 election.

Gohmert was the only member of Congress to speak at the conference, and was part of the conspiracy-theorizing that took place.

He said in remarks at the event that the perpetrators of the Jan. 6 insurrection weren’t “just right-wing extremists,” continuing the false GOP messaging that the failed attempt to block Congress’ certification of Biden’s Electoral College win was incited by left-wing groups. Continue reading.

‘The most nakedly nativist rhetoric’: House Republicans launch caucus for ‘Anglo-Saxon political traditions’

Although former President Donald Trump has been gone from the White House for almost three months, many far-right Republicans in Congress continue to push an equally nativist “America first” agenda — and Punchbowl News is reporting that some of Trump’s Republican allies in the U.S. House of Representatives are putting together an “America First Caucus” based on “Anglo-Saxon political traditions.”

According to Punchbowl, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona are “distributing materials” calling for a caucus that would express a “common respect for uniquely Anglo-Saxon political traditions.” Punchbowl reports that according to an e-mail invitation it has obtained a copy of, House Republicans who have been invited to join the America First Caucus include Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas and Rep. Barry Moore of Alabama.

Continue reading.

Ethics upholds Gohmert’s $5,000 metal detector fine

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The House Ethics Committee said Tuesday that it is upholding the $5,000 fine levied against Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) for bypassing a security screening to enter the House chamber.

Gohmert had appealed the fine issued by the House sergeant-at-arms on Feb. 5, days after House Democrats voted to enact the punitive measure to enforce compliance with the metal detector screenings established following the Jan. 6 insurrection.

But a majority of the House Ethics Committee declined to agree to the appeal, meaning Gohmert is now obligated to pay the $5,000 fine. The panel is evenly split with five Democrats and five Republicans. Continue reading.

GOP Reps. Gohmert, Clyde fined $5,000 each for bypassing House metal detectors

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Republican Reps. Louie Gohmert (Texas) and Andrew Clyde (Ga.) were fined $5,000 each for bypassing hand-held metal detectors before entering the House chamber on Thursday in violation of a rule adopted this week, according to a senior Democratic aide. 

Why it matters: Gohmert and Clyde are the first lawmakers to face the fine, which will be deducted directly from their salaries. 

What they’re saying: “We’ll be appealing because this is ridiculous. This isn’t ‘The Godfather’ where you plant a gun in the toilet tank,” Gohmert told Axios. “There is no toilet tank in the bathroom.”  Continue reading.

Rep. Louie Gohmert Backpedals On ‘Be Violent’ Comments After Election Lawsuit Loss

The Texas lawmaker compares his philosophy to Martin Luther King’s, even as he rails to overthrow the democratic election.

Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) issued a statement Saturday backpedaling on his controversial comments indicating that street violence is the only recourse in the wake of his lawsuit loss to overturn the results of the democratic presidential election.

Gohmert made the remarks about violence Friday on the far-right news channel Newsmax. He spoke after U.S. District Judge Jeremy Kernodle shot down his court case that argued Vice President Mike Pence has the power to unilaterally reappoint Donald Trump as president by selectively choosing the electoral votes he’ll recognize, and replacing the others with votes for Trump.

The judge ruled Gohmert had no standing to sue. Continue reading.

GOP Rep. Gohmert Openly Calls For Violence In The Streets After Losing In Court

At this point, Republicans might as well just open fire on Fort Sumter and be done with it. That’s the only way they could show more evidence of their “patriotism” and love for the Constitution. The only question is: Who’s going to be first? The whole right-of-center portion of the American political spectrum has fallen into a system where the selective pressure is all about being the most outrageous, the most extreme, the most willing to trample all the meaning of the American system into the mud while waving the symbols of that system overhead. It’s not a race to the bottom, because there is no bottom. But there is a point of no return, and Republicans have gone way, way past that point.

On Saturday, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz set out to prove just that when he arranged a whole legion of Republican senators who intend to “reject the electors” from certain states. “Certain,” in this case, means those states that didn’t vote for Donald Trump. But Cruz’s play to regain some of that sweet Traitor Energy that’s been going to Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley isn’t even the slimiest play of the day.

Because after losing in court, Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert is flat out calling for people to commit violence to overthrow democracy. Continue reading.

Judge dismisses Gohmert lawsuit seeking to stymie Biden electoral college count

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A federal judge in Texas has dismissed a long-shot lawsuit by Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Tex.) that sought to overturn the presidential election, saying neither the congressman nor his allies have legal standing to pursue the case.

The judge’s Friday night ruling tosses out what many election law experts considered a far-fetched theory to challenge the formal mechanism by which President-elect Joe Biden will be affirmed as the winner of the race for president.

U.S. District Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle issued an order dismissing the case because, he found, neither Gohmert nor his fellow plaintiffs have a sufficient legal stake in the process to justify the lawsuit. Kernodle was nominated to the federal bench by President Trump. Continue reading.

Pence seeks rejection of lawsuit that aimed to expand his power to overturn the election

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Vice President Pence asked a judge late Thursday to reject a lawsuit that aims to expand his power to use a congressional ceremony to overturn the presidential election, arguing that he is not the right person to sue over the issue.

The filing will come as a disappointment to supporters of President Trump, who hoped that Pence would attempt to reject some of President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral college votes and recognize votes for Trump instead when Congress meets next week to certify the November election.

The filing came in response to a lawsuit from Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Tex.) and a number of Republicans in Arizona, who argued that an 1887 law that governs how Congress certifies presidential elections is unconstitutional. The suit argues that the Constitution gives the vice president, in his role as president of the Senate, sole discretion to determine whether electors put forward by the states are valid. Continue reading.

GOP lawmaker’s daughter blames Trump after her dad gets COVID-19: ‘My father ignored medical expertise’

AlterNet logoThe daughter of Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, called out President Donald Trump after her father tested positive for COVID-19 last week.

Gohmert had refused to wear a mask for months before contracting the disease. After testing positive, he attempted to claim that he got sick by incorrectly wearing a mask.

Gohmert’s daughter, Caroline Brooks, posted a statement on Twitter urging people to wear masks after her father’s diagnosis.

“Wearing a mask is a non-partisan issue,” Brooks, who is a musician, posted under her stage name BELLSAINT. “The advice of medical experts shouldn’t be politicized. My father ignored medical expertise and now he has COVID.” Continue reading.