GOP Rep. Massie’s bid to stall vote outrages House, Trump

WASHINGTON— Rep. Thomas Massie has always gone his own way in Congress, ever since he first ran for office inspired by a fellow libertarian-leaning Kentuckian, Sen. Rand Paul.

Now in his fourth term, the Republican from northern Kentucky has frequently voted no on issues large and small, even against the wishes of GOP leaders.

He did it again Friday by attempting to force a roll call vote on the $2.2 trillion coronavirus aid package — the only member of Congress willing to stall, if not block, the historic legislation.

While his effort failed, Massie’s action forced hundreds of lawmakers to return to the Capitol after a nearly two-week recess — potentially exposing them to the coronavirus and contradicting the wishes of public health experts who have urged Americans to keep a safe social distance from one another to avoid exacerbating the pandemic.

Not even pressure from GOP leaders and tweets by President Donald Trump calling Massie a “third-rate Grandstander” were enough to knock Massie, 49, off the mission he has pursued since winning office in 2012: to abide by the Constitution and to not overspend federal dollars.

Massie said his request for a recorded vote was “to make sure our republic doesn’t die by unanimous consent in an empty chamber.”

In a series of tweets Friday, Massie said he swore an oath to uphold the Constitution and takes it seriously. The Constitution requires that a quorum of members be present to conduct business in the House, he said, noting that millions of Americans are still required to go to work during the pandemic, including health care workers and those on manufacturing lines.

“Is it too much to ask that the House do its job, just like the Senate did?” he said, adding that the bill was “stuffed full” of pork added by Democrats. He pointed to $25 million for the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington and grants for the National Endowment for the Humanities and Arts.

The move — and Trump’s rebuke — could hamper Massie’s reelection prospects. He is facing a spirited 2020 primary challenge from Todd McMurtry, an attorney who represented a Kentucky student who became embroiled in media lawsuits after a viral encounter with a Native American activist in Washington, D.C., in early 2019. House leaders brought up the aid package on a voice vote, meaning it would pass with members calling out either “aye“or “nay,” but the procedure allows for any one lawmaker to ask for a recorded vote. Massie did so but was unable win enough support among House members to override the voice vote.