Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) said the House Sergeant at Arms threatened him with a $500 fine if he didn’t delete his video of Congress members waiving the Ukrainian flag on the House floor.
“Instead of fining democrats for waving flags, the House Sergeant at Arms just called and said I will be fined $500 if I don’t delete this video post. Mike Johnson really wants to memory hole this betrayal of America,” Massie said.
The video is currently pinned to his profile.
WATCH:
Instead of fining democrats for waving flags, the House Sergeant at Arms just called and said I will be fined $500 if I don’t delete this video post.
Mike Johnson really wants to memory hole this betrayal of America. https://t.co/5DPWoo4cLw
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) April 23, 2024
“You can be fined for posting a video?” Elon Musk asked.
“There’s nothing that gives them the authority to demand I remove a video from my congressional account, but they are. There is a fine in the rules for taking pictures/videos on the House floor, but they don’t know if I taped this, and democrats post from the floor frequently (example attached),” Massie commented.
“I believe to be fined, they have to serve you notice on the floor while it’s happening (that’s how I was fined for not wearing a mask). Seems a bit creepy that the Sergeant at Arms would be on my X account three days later looking for an infraction. And how would deleting the video undo my alleged infraction of filming on the House floor? (It wouldn’t),” he continued.
“The uniparty is big mad at me for exposing them on several votes and for asking the Speaker to resign. The Speaker, his staff, or one of his allies in our conference is probably directing the Sergeant at Arms to do this,” he added.
There’s nothing that gives them the authority to demand I remove a video from my congressional account, but they are.
There is a fine in the rules for taking pictures/videos on the House floor, but they don’t know if I taped this, and democrats post from the floor frequently… pic.twitter.com/N0fD89Qr03
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) April 23, 2024
From The Post Millennial:
The video of Democratic representatives went viral on Saturday after a package of over $60 billion passed in the House of Representatives to go to Ukraine.
Although it is not clear exactly how the alleged fine was ordered, a Congressional Research Service report on the duties of the House Sergeant at Arms states, “Under the direction of the Speaker of the House or other presiding officer, the Sergeant at Arms plays an integral role in maintaining order and decorum in the House chamber.”
The current House Sergeant at Arms is William McFarland who acts as “the chief law enforcement and protocol officer of the House of Representatives and is responsible for maintaining order in the House side of the United States Capitol complex.”
The proposed legislation has gone to the Senate for a vote where it is likely to pass on Tuesday evening.
Thomas Massie says he was threatened with fine by House Sergeant at Arms for refusing to delete video showing House members waving Ukraine flagshttps://t.co/9jHfOzyR3Hhttps://t.co/9jHfOzyR3H
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) April 23, 2024
“Upon viewing Rep. Massie’s tweet, our team reached out to the Sergeant at Arms. I do not agree with this assessment and there will be no fine imposed on Rep. Massie,” Mike Johnson said Tuesday evening.
Upon viewing Rep. Massie’s tweet, our team reached out to the Sergeant at Arms. I do not agree with this assessment and there will be no fine imposed on Rep. Massie. https://t.co/isqVHdVjUQ
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) April 23, 2024