US House Democrat under investigation for fire alarm stunt
October 1, 2023
Jamaal Bowman pulled a fire alarm at the US Capitol Saturday, delaying a budget vote. He says it was a regrettable mistake, some Republicans want him to quit.
Representative Bowman says he accidentally pulled the alarm as he rushed to an emergency vote SaturdayImage: Allison Bailey/NurPhoto/picture alliance
Advertisement
US House Representative Jamaal Bowman, a Democrat from New York, is under investigation for pulling a fire alarm on Saturday and forcing the evacuation of parts of the US Capitol ahead of an important budget vote in the chamber.
Capitol Police released an image of Bowman pulling the alarm and said they had begun an "investigation into what happened and why."
The Republican-controlled House Administration Committee is also looking into the incident.
Some Republicans have accused Bowman of seeking to delay vote on a bill to avert a government shutdown. They say his behavior deserves censure, with some even calling for his resignation.
Bowman admitted that he had pulled the alarm but denied any ill intent.
Hardline Republicans want Bowman and McCarthy gone
"Today, as I was rushing to make a vote, I came to a door that is usually open for votes but today would not open," Bowman said in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter). "I am embarrassed to admit that I activated the fire alarm, mistakenly thinking it would open the door. I regret this and sincerely apologize for any confusion this caused."
Bowman pulled the alarm in the Cannon House Office Building, forcing its evacuation. One hour passed before Capitol Police were able to give the all-clear for lawmakers and aides to return.
The House ultimately passed the emergency spending bill to keep the government operative for the next 45-days despite Republican attempts to shut it down. The 71-page bill was presented Saturday afternoon by embattled House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) ahead of a midnight deadline.
Democrats said they needed time to review possible concessions made by McCarthy to GOP hardliners who on Sunday initiated actions to have him removed from the speakership.
After the vote, McCarthy said of the false alarm: "This should not go without punishment. This is an embarrassment." McCarthy said he planned to meet House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) regarding a response.
Jeffries, however, voiced support for Bowman in remarks to reporters, "He understood that it was a mistake and that's all it was."
Bowman called the House GOP leader's reaction disingenuous, saying McCarthy was, "trying to weaponize a mistake of me coming, rushing to get to a vote as something nefarious when it wasn't."
US government shutdowns: A chronology
President Joe Biden's government is facing a shutdown if the Republican Congress doesn't approve the budget for the coming fiscal year. DW looks at how shutdowns started, when they became partisan and how much they cost.
Image: Getty Images/D. Angerer
Sundown shutdown
As midnight approaches on September 30, it's go time for Congress: Approve a budget before the start of the new fiscal year on October 1, or shut down the government. Originally, Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution required lawmakers to approve the budget. Honing it further in 1870, the Antideficiency Act targeted agencies that spent money without asking. But deadlines were often missed.
Image: picture-alliance/CNP/A. Edelma
No money, no pay, no work
At the behest of President Jimmy Carter, the US attorney general revisited the Antideficiency Act in 1980 to answer the question: "Without a budget, are government employees required to work?" According to his Attorney General's legal opinion, no money meant no work. Carter's presidency saw only small shutdowns, but the new interpretation of the law turned shutdowns into a negotiating tactic.
Image: picture alliance / Everett Collection
Ronald Reagan and the first shutdown
The first real shutdown — more than 240,000 workers furloughed, more than $80 million (€65 million) down the drain — occurred in November 1981. President Ronald Reagan refused to sign a budget without billions in tax cuts. The Republican-controlled Senate and the Democrat-controlled House found a solution the next day. This happened seven more times by his last year in 1989.
Image: AP
Bill Clinton and the rise of the partisan shutdown
Budget impasses were largely drama-free until 1995, when President Bill Clinton faced off against Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole and House Speaker Newt Gingrich (pictured left). The Republican-led Congress wanted a balanced budget within seven years, higher Medicare premiums and rollbacks on environment regulations. It took 27 days in total to strike a deal. The cost: at least $1 billion.
Image: POOL/AFP/Getty Images
A game for Congress, a headache for the agencies
Many departments such as the military, national security and any deemed essential to the protection of life continue working during shutdowns. But agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must cease operations. This results in delays on tax decisions, food inspection and disease research among other problems.
Image: picture-alliance/BSIP/B. Boissonet
Barack Obama and Congress on Cruz-control
The next major shutdown came in 2013 under President Barack Obama. His Affordable Health Care Act — or Obamacare — faced stark opposition from conservative House Republicans. Led by Senator Ted Cruz, the group pushed for drastic curbs on the health care act in exchange for raising the debt ceiling. The 18-day shutdown resulted in the furlough of some 850,000 workers. The cost: $24 billion.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/C. Dharapak
Shutdown for a wall
The longest shutdown in US history so far lasted 35 days in December 2018 and January 2019. Hundreds of federal workers went without paychecks. Despite the disruption, then-President Donald Trump insisted that funding for his Mexico border wall be included in the budget. In fact, Trump had said he was prepared for the impasse to go on for years — before he gave in and reopened government.
Image: Doug Mills/UPI Photo/Imago Images
Cost of playing politics
The prohibitive cost of shutting down some government operations has not tamed the trend. Washington loses millions not just in revenue, but also in back pay, even though furloughed employees stay at home. So, time lost, work lost — and money lost. According to a 2019 estimate by ratings agency Standard and Poor's, a government shutdown costs the US roughly $6 billion per week.
Image: Imago
Shutdowns contributing to distrust?
The biggest loser is not the economy, or the party that makes the most concessions, it's the government itself. According to a Gallup poll in the aftermath of the 2013 shutdown, public dissatisfaction with the government in general rose to 33%. The previous all-time high regarding political dysfunction was 26% during the Watergate scandal.
