PRESS RELEASE
Congressman Walter Jones Voices Strong Support for Motion To Remove Boehner
July 30, 2015 (EIRNS)—As previously reported, Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) yesterday filed a motion in the House of Representatives to remove John Boehner from his position as Speaker of the House. In reporting on Meadows’s motion, CNN obtained comments from his colleague, Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), who provided a strong explanation for the motion.
"We are sent here to represent the people of our districts," Jones said. "Our first allegiance should be to the people we represent, not to the Speaker of the House. Too many times he has used that position to intimidate and coerce." Rep. Jones sketched out how in the recent votes on the trade fast-track authority for the President, Boehner had taken reprisals against Republicans who voted against the bill, such as removing them from committee chairmanships. Jones said, "We’re not here to be puppets of the Speaker of the House; we’re here to represent the people of our districts." One of the CNN anchors asked whether the motion was just a personal attack by Rep. Meadows, who had lost a chairmanship. Jones responded,
"I don’t think anyone should be intimidated because they vote their conscience. If you can’t vote your conscience, then you don’t need to be here for the people back home. You really don’t. If you’re supposed to be here to vote the will of the Speaker and not the will of the people, then you don’t need to be here. And this Speaker in my opinion has used too much force to intimidate, and that’s wrong."
A few minutes later, Rep. Jones said in closing,
"... when you’ve got a problem like we have with the Speaker of the House being so coercive, then we need to do what is necessary for the good of the people and the good of this country."
