Democrats take over Congress with sit-in

SIT-IN PROTEST Democratic Representatives Peter DeFazio of Oregon, Katherine Clark of Massachusetts and John Lewis of Georgia participate in a sit-in protest seeking a vote on gun-control measures in the US House of Representatives on Wednesday. AP

WASHINGTON—Democrats carried a remarkable House floor sit-in into a second day, disrupting the business of Congress with demands for gun-control votes in an unruly scene broadcast live to the world.

Republicans branded the move as a publicity stunt before summarily adjourning the chamber until after the Fourth of July.

Even after the House adjourned around 3:15 a.m. EDT Thursday (3:15 p.m. in Manila), and Republicans streamed to the exits, Democrats stayed on the House floor, shouting “No bill, no break!” and waving papers with the names of gun victims written in black.

Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters of California said she was ready to stay “until hell freezes over.”

Gradually the Democrats began to wind down their protest, but a core group lingered, some wrapped in blankets or resting on pillows.

With a crowd cheering them on from outside the Capitol and many more following the theatrics on social media, Democrats declared success in dramatizing the argument for action to stem gun violence.

“Just because they cut and run in the dark of night, just because they have left doesn’t mean we are taking no for an answer,” said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

“We won’t stop until the job is done,” the Californian declared to fellow Democrats camped out in the well of the House in the early hours of the morning, saying the party had changed “the dynamic of what happens” concerning guns.

House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland said the public shouldn’t be happy with a Republican majority that shut down the House and disregarded “the unfinished business of the American people.”

‘Publicity stunt’

Republicans fiercely resisted the Democratic pressure, saying their colleagues had accomplished nothing other than disrupting the business of the House to score political points.

House Speaker Paul Ryan called it “a publicity stunt.”

Democratic Rep. John Lewis, who had participated in the civil rights sit-ins in the South in the 1960s, said Democrats had “crossed one bridge.”

But he added early Thursday, “We have other bridges to cross.” He said Democrats “made a down payment on ending gun violence” in America.

Pelosi said Democrats “have changed the dynamic of what happens” on guns.

Pressure had been building on both sides of the Capitol in the wake of the shooting rampage at a Florida gay nightclub earlier this month that killed 49 people and injured 53 others. The assailant also died in the incident.

The mass shooting followed similar tragic incidents over the past years including the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.

The agitation for action caused a Senate filibuster last week and led to the chaos on the House floor that lasted well into Thursday.

A burst of activity in the middle of the night, including recorded votes on some other issues such as the Zika virus,  capped more than 15 straight hours of Democratic protests.

The spectacle captured the attention of a Washington gridlocked on guns despite the slaughter in Orlando. Senate Democrats undertook a nearly 15-hour filibuster last week in fighting for the same cause.

House Republicans used their prerogatives as the majority party to muscle through a partisan bill funding the Zika crisis with no time for debate, overruling Democrat’s objections and then moving to adjourn the House into next month as Democrats cried “Shame, Shame!”

Republicans shut off the cameras in the House gallery throughout most of the protest, but Democrats used their cell phones to capture the action, and C-SPAN carried the feeds live in an unprecedented move.

Speaker Ryan said the bills, pushed by Democrats to expand background checks and keep people on the no-fly list from getting guns, would take away people’s constitutional rights and deprive them of due process.

He noted similar legislation was already rejected in the Senate earlier in the week.

Protest unfolds

The protest began around 11:30 a.m.  on Wednesday, unfolding on the House floor with little advance warning from the Democrats.

By evening, 168 House Democrats—out of 188—and 34 Senate Democrats joined the protest, according to the House minority leader’s office.

One after another, they spoke of the need for gun control and talked of constituents who had been killed.

Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan, whose husband, former Rep. John Dingell, is a longtime NRA supporter, won thunderous applause and a standing ovation after she talked in personal terms about her experience growing up in a home with gun violence.

Scattered around the House floor were signs reading “Disarm Hate.” Visitors watched from the galleries.

A crowd of several hundred gun-control advocates gathered outside the Capitol and cheered as Democrats addressed them.

The sit-in—in which Lewis played a leading role—had the look of a 1960s-style protest, as some lawmakers sat on the floor, others in their seats.

The House chamber grew increasingly chaotic as the night wore on, and some lawmakers took breaks on pillows and blankets.

Similar protests

Republicans had staged a similar protest in 2008. Democrats controlling the House at the time turned off the cameras amid a Republican push for a vote to expand oil and gas drilling.

Republicans occupied the floor, delivering speech after speech after Pelosi, then the House Speaker, sent lawmakers bolting to their August recess.

Pelosi at that time had ordered the cameras turned off. AP