Rep. Stanton criticized for voting from boat during committee hearing

Rep. Greg Stanton drew jeers on Friday for taking part in a House Transportation Committee hearing from a boat, lending a leisurely appearance to a job often held in scorn by the public, especially during a pandemic and recession.

At one point, the freshman Arizona Democrat voted during the mostly empty hearing, known as a markup, by videoconference on Wednesday, where his appearance floating on the water seemed to jar a colleague.

“Is Stanton rowing a boat?” the member said. It appeared to come from Rep. Peter DeFazio, DOre., who chairs the committee, after he lowered his mask and turned to a colleague.

Stanton apologized Friday in a post on Twitter. A spokeswoman said he appeared from Utah, where he was visiting family, and was on a boat.

“There’s no getting around it: I messed up and I’m sorry for it. I participated in the five-hour markup mostly from inside and went outside to watch my kids (while listening in the entire time) shortly before the vote was called,” Stanton said.

At a time when most of his constituents in Phoenix are homebound in a state that has struggled mightily to bring down its COVID-19 infections, the visual of a congressman on a boat quickly burned through social media.

Rep. Paul Gosar, RAriz., was among those who let Stanton have it.

“Exactly as I predicted,” Gosar wrote on Twitter. “The democrats enacted ‘proxy’ and ‘remote’ voting. These guys are literally phoning it in while half way across the country. This is more like a zoom call now.”

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who is a member of the Transportation Compeople mittee, added to the ridicule.

“I guess I’m a sucker for actually showing up to work in Congress this week,” he said.

The hearing involved passage of the Water Resources Development Act. Stanton was participating in a committee hearing, not a regular session of the entire House.

Earlier in the hearing, he had taken part while sitting in a residential setting while wearing a blazer.

“For Arizona, this bill delivers vital assistance I have fought for to address our aging water and wastewater systems,” he said, noting that it helps

across the state.

The issue of allowing members of Congress participate from afar has divided along partisan lines.

Reach the reporter Ronald J. Hansen at ron ald.hansen@arizonare public.com or 602-4444493. Follow him on Twitter @ronaldjhansen.