House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has vowed to boot at least two Republicans off the Intelligence Committee should Democrats regain majority control following November’s elections, Axios reported Thursday.
The appointment of Reps. Scott Perry, R-Pa., and Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, to the committee by Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., roiled lawmakers from both parties, Axios reported. Perry’s phone was seized by the FBI as part of the investigation into the events of Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol, and Jackson has faced allegations of workplace misconduct during his time as the White House physician for former President Donald Trump.
Jeffries responded “to be continued” when was asked Thursday during a news conference whether he would kick Perry and Jackson off the committee and whether Democrats might exclude other Republicans from committees if they regain the House majority, according to Axios.
Johnson appointed Perry and Jackson to the committee to replace former Republican Reps. Chris Stewart of Utah and Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, each of whom resigned midway through their terms.
In June, Jeffries called the picks “frightening,” according to Axios, and said, “If the American people give us the opportunity to govern with the gavels in November, we can assure you that a different decision would be made.”
A senior House Democrat told Axios they expect Jeffries — at a minimum — to boot Jackson and Perry from the Intelligence Committee.
Should that happen, it would continue a tit-for-tat pattern by both parties of kicking members off committees that was started by Democrats in 2021, who voted to strip all committee assignments from Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Paul Gosar of Arizona.
When Republicans gained the majority in 2023, Democrat Reps. Eric Swalwell and Adam Schiff of California were kicked off the Intelligence Committee by then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and the House voted to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., from the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, told Axios he’s hoping Democrats would “elevate the quality of our political discourse a little bit” and that he’s not interested in seeing Greene booted from the Oversight panel if his party regains control.
“Republicans kind of set a lower precedent, lower bar this Congress,” Raskin said.
