Trump praises GOP unity in opposing resolution condemning tweets

President Trump on Tuesday night praised House Republicans for their show of unity in voting against a Democratic-introduced resolution condemning as “racist” his tweets targeting four minority lawmakers. 

“So great to see how unified the Republican Party was on today’s vote concerning statements I made about four Democrat Congresswomen,” Trump tweeted.

“If you really want to see statements, look at the horrible things they said about our Country, Israel, and much more,” he continued. “They are now the top, most visible members of the House Democrats, who are now wedded to this bitterness and hate. The Republican vote was 187-4. Wow! Also, this was the first time since 1984 that the Speaker of the House was ruled Out of Order and broke the Rules of the House. Quite a day!”{mosads}

Trump was referring to a resolution first announced by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and passed on Tuesday evening. The resolution formally condemned as racist a series of tweets Trump posted on Sunday morning in which he said that a group of progressive congresswomen — Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) — should “go back” to the countries they came from.

The comments drew swift condemnation, including from some Republicans, a few of whom denounced the tweets as racist. All four of the congresswomen are U.S. citizens, and only Omar, who came to the U.S. as a refugee from Somalia, was born outside the United States.

The resolution introduced by Democrats allowed for a show of unity from the party after a week of bitter infighting between the progressive and centrist wings. But it also gave Democratic leadership a chance to put pressure on Republicans to denounce Trump’s statements. 

In the end, the 240-187 vote fell mostly along party lines. Just four Republicans — Reps. Susan Brooks (Ind.), Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Will Hurd (Texas) and Fred Upton (Mich.) — voted to approve the resolution. 

The vote came after a tense moment in which the House parliamentarian rebuked Pelosi after she blasted Trump, arguing her comments violated the rules forbidding lawmakers from directly attacking the president on the House floor.

Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) led an effort to formally strike Pelosi’s remarks, but the vote on the motion failed, with every Republican voting in favor of it.

The resolution condemning Trump’s tweets came after a growing outcry over the comments from Democrats. On Monday evening, the four congresswomen targeted by Trump held a press conference in which they fired back at Trump, with Omar once again calling for him to be impeached.