Rep. Jamaal Bowman pulled fire alarm as House Democrats tried to stall GOP measure

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) was caught by a security camera pulling a fire alarm in the Cannon House Office Building as Democrats were trying to stall a vote on the clean continuing resolution put on the floor by Republicans.

It came as House Democrats were using a number of procedural measures to stall a vote on a clean continuing resolution to buy time for their members to read the bill.

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“I was rushing to make a vote, I was trying to get to a door. I thought the alarm would open a door,” he told reporters, adding that the notion he pulled it to delay a vote is “complete BS.”

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he hasn’t “seen the video,” and “until I see the video, I’ll have no further comment,” while Bowman said the Democratic leader “was supportive and understood it was a mistake.”

The congressman “did not realize he would trigger a building alarm as he was rushing to make an urgent vote,” Sarah Iddrissu, Bowman’s chief of staff, said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “The Congressman regrets any confusion.”

“Rep Jamal Bowman pulled a fire alarm in Cannon this morning. An investigation into why it was pulled is underway,” House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil said in a post on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.

Rep. Lisa McClain (R-MI) has drafted a motion to censure Bowman for pulling the fire alarm. Reps. Mike Collins (GA-R), Franklin, Nancy Mace (R-SC), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), Carol Miller (R-WV), and Jack Bergman (R-MI) have joined as cosponsors, per McClain’s office.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said he planned to “have a discussion with the Democratic Leader” about the incident, saying that it “should not go without punishment.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA-R) told the Washington Examiner, “There’s a video. I mean, how dumb is he that he doesn’t realize that there’s cameras?”

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Congress is in Washington D.C. this weekend as they attempt to avert a government shutdown that would go into effect on Sunday.

Cami Mondeaux contributed to this report.

This is a breaking story and will be updated.