North Carolina Republicans have hit a shocking new low. As Gov. Roy Cooper and at least one Democrat from the North Carolina legislature attended a memorial on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Republicans held a surprise vote to override the Democratic governor’s veto of the state budget. Democrats had been assured that there would be no votes on Wednesday morning, and that Republicans were only opening the session as a technicality so they could get to work on other business.
Nevertheless, Republicans plunged forward with their shocking override, despite only roughly half of the members and no Democratic leadership present. The News & Observer: in Raleigh reports, “’This is a travesty of the process and you know it,’ Rep. Deb Butler, D-New Hanover, said when the vote was called, noting that Democratic leadership was not present. ‘We will not yield.’”
More than that, Butler went off before she was practically dragged off the floor, “You shall not do this to democracy in North Carolina, Mr. Speaker!” Republicans cut off her microphone and had police remove her from the chamber.
Rep. John Autry shared Butler’s furious response to the speaker on Facebook and captured Republicans calling for police to remove her. An outraged Autry can be heard saying, “How can you stand there and do this? This is unrealistic, unbelievable, and unacceptable. This is just the kind of thing that erodes confidence in government, to pull these kinds of stunts.” WATCH:
Butler expanded on the outrageous moves once she was outside the chamber:
Butler told reporters that she was threatened with arrest on the House floor. She called the Republicans’ governing “scorched earth politics” and an “embarrassment.”
“What happened in that chamber this morning is heartbreaking,” she said. “The fact that they would sit and lie in wait to trap these good citizens, these good representatives, is disgraceful.”
She went even further as she described the sophomoric and despicable behavior Republicans showed during the vote.
"I'm so very disappointed that the Republicans would stoop to this level. If you could've seen the smirking, the rib poking, the grinning, the thrill of victory when you have intentionally mislead our leader, that is despicable behavior." Rep. Deb Butler (D-Wilmington) said. "I don't mind losing a fair fight, but the deceit and misdirection and gotcha style politics should upset every voter in North Carolina."
The veto override passed with only 64 of 120 members present.
How morally bankrupt do you have to be to use the morning of 9/11 to pervert democracy and sneak a vote past your fellow citizens? Nationwide, Republicans prove themselves to be completely devoid of morals or ethics, day in and day out.