Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Schiff (D-CA) is consulting with the Sergeant at Arms after dozens of House Republicans who are not assigned to any of the committees involved in the impeachment inquiry of the president stormed a secure room in an unauthorized attempt to gain access to the proceedings.
The unprecedented attempt to obstruct the impeachment inquiry delayed the testimony of several witnesses who were in the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF), as Politico reports. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Laura Cooper was just about to begin her testimony when Republicans struck.
“It was closest thing I’ve seen around here to mass civil unrest as a member of Congress,” a source in the room told CNN. The several dozen Republicans “stormed through the three different doors,” and refused to leave.
Politico adds that “some GOP lawmakers brought their cell phones into the secure area — a significant violation of House rules. Another person said the room had to be fully swept for potential security breaches.”
Schiff is reportedly threatening those GOP lawmakers with ethics violations.
This was not a rogue group of Republicans acting on their own. They were led by one of the top Republicans in the House, Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA), and right wing extremist Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL).
“They basically ran over a member of the staff” to get in the room, said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.). “They just came into the room and started shouting about the president. Literally some of them were just screaming … saying that the process is wrong.”
Politico referred to the attack as a “stunt,” but Democrats are following the House rules.
“In reality,” Politico adds, “more than 45 House Republicans — nearly a quarter of the House GOP conference — already have full access to the depositions via their membership on one of the three committees leading the impeachment inquiry. And during the depositions, Republican counsel is given the same amount of time to question witnesses as Democratic counsel.”
Chief Political Correspondent for Sinclair at WJLA posted video:
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UPDATE: 2:33 PM ET –