Once he released a video of Democrats in Congress chambers waving the Ukrainian flag, Rep. Thomas Massie received threats of a $500 punishment.
Massie uploaded the video to the social networking site X. That same day, the House voted in favor of passing a $95 bill that would have provided Taiwan, Israel, and Ukraine with foreign aid.
The House Sergeant at Arms had threatened to penalize Massie if he did not remove the video, he said in a tweet three days later.
Rather than penalizing Democrats for flag waving, the House Sergeant at Arms just gave me a call and threatened to charge me $500 if I did not remove this video online. He wrote, “Mike Johnson truly wants to erase this betrayal of America from memory.”
Take note of his attempt to assign blame for the House Sergeant at Arms’ threat to his fellow Republican, Speaker Mike Johnson.
Following the shocking disclosure, opponents attacked Johnson and the House Sergeant at Arms.
To his credit, however, the speaker made contact with the House Sergeant at Arms and arranged a compromise that spared Massie from a $500 fine.
“After seeing Representative Massie’s tweet, our group contacted the Sergeant at Arms.” Rep. Massie will not face a punishment because I disagree with this judgment, Johnson stated in a tweet of his own.
Surprisingly, though, the speaker’s tweet also generated backlash, with opponents stating they did not trust him after he had masterminded the passing of yet another massive foreign aid package the previous week.
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
One critic tweeted, “I do not trust Speaker Johnson for a second. The outcry over it on social media is the only reason he’s canceling Massie’s punishment. Why should we take Johnson at his word?”
“He made false claims about securing the border and releasing all of the J6 film. He also continues to support Biden’s spying on Americans. Johnson is untrustworthy,” the critic continued.
Author: Blake Ambrose
