In an example of Republican obstructionism rendered beautiful by its simplicity, the GOP yesterday killed a House bill that would increase funding for scientific research and math and science education by forcing Democrats to vote in favor of federal employees viewing pornography.
Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX), the ranking member of the House science committee, introduced a motion to recommit, a last-ditch effort to change a bill by sending it back to the committee with mandatory instructions.
In this case, Republicans included a provision that would bar the federal government from paying the salaries of employees who’ve been disciplined for viewing pornography at work.
To proceed with the bill and bring it to a final vote, Democrats would have had to vote against the motion to recommit, and against the porn ban.
But they didn’t have the stomach for it, and 121 Democrats jumped ship and voted with Republicans to kill the bill.
“For anyone that is concerned about federal employees watching pornography, they just saw a pornographic movie. It’s called; ‘Motion to Recommit,'” Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN) said. “It was a cynical effort to undermine an important bill for my 9-year-old daughter, for your kids and your grandkids.”
The bill had passed the committee last month with bipartisan support, in a vote of 29 to 8.
“If at any point during the 48 hearings we’ve held on this bill, the Minority brought up their concerns with isolated incidents of federal employees viewing pornography, or if they had made an amendment in order during any of the three Subcommittee markups, the Full Committee Markup, or the Floor Consideration, I would have been happy to vote for that amendment,” Gordon said in a press release after the vote.
“We’re all opposed to federal employees watching pornography. That is not a question; but that’s not what this was about,” he went on. “The Motion to Recommit was about gutting funding for our science agencies.”
Democrats pulled the bill off the floor after the motion passed and promised to introduce it again next week.
The bill — a re-authorization of the 2007 COMPETES Act — has been supported by interests usually seen as aligned with Republicans, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Hall did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
