The US House of Representatives has voted to issue a public reprimand to Texas Democrat Al Green for disrupting a speech by US President Donald Trump in Congress.
House Leader Mike Johnson then ordered Green removed from the chamber after he stood up from his seat and shouted at Trump, who said that "in the November 5th election, he received a mandate not seen in decades."
"You have no mandate," the Houston Democrat shouted and waved his cane, refusing to obey Johnson's order and return to his seat.
Republicans reacted quickly and formally reprimanded Green, which remains in the House record of the conduct of a member of Congress. When such a decision is approved by the majority, the censured member of Congress must stand in the center of the chamber while the speaker reads the reprimand.
The resolution passed along party lines, with 224 votes in favor and 198 against. The resolution's sponsor, Republican Dan Newhouse, said it was "a difficult but necessary step."
Outbursts by members of the House of Representatives from both parties have happened before.
Democrat Jim McGovern noted that Republicans did not react when members of their party interrupted former US President Joseph Biden's speech to Congress last year.
They shouted "say her name," referring to Laken Riley, a girl who was killed by a Venezuelan immigrant, as Biden spoke about immigration issues.
"No one apologized at the time for interrupting Biden multiple times. You're talking about a lack of decency, and look back a little and you'll see that you didn't react to that," McGovern says.
The resolution on public reprimand for Green states that he violated the norms of appropriate behavior and was removed from the session after numerous outbursts.
Johnson wrote on the social network X that Green "has disgraced the institution of Congress and the citizens it serves."
"He has deliberately violated House rules and a public reprimand is the appropriate measure. Democrats who are concerned about regaining the trust of the public should join Republicans in this measure."
Green, who is serving his 11th term, did not say he was sorry for what he had done.
He stressed that he did not blame Johnson for ordering his removal after the outburst.
"Friends, I would do it again," Green said, explaining that he reacted because "Trump does not have the mandate to end Medicaid," a health insurance program for poor and elderly Americans.
"It's a matter of principle and conscience. Many people in this country suffer because they don't have health insurance. When it comes to your conscience, it's better to speak up yourself than not to speak up at all," Green concluded.
Trump said last Sunday that he "will not touch" the health insurance program.
Some Democrats didn't even show up for Trump's speech to Congress, while others walked out during the speech. Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he thought it was "important to sit in the room, resolutely and with dignity."
"I think Green was telling the truth," says Democrat Mark Takano.
Nancy Pelosi, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, who tore up Trump's State of the Union address live on camera a few years ago, said that "everyone is expressing their own opinion" and that "the focus needs to be kept on what the president is saying."
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