Free Republic

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) announced Monday that she is extending proxy voting for the House of Representatives through at least May 14 despite Capitol officials easing other coronavirus restrictions. Proxy voting, which can only be approved for 45 days at a time under proxy voting rules established in May 2020, was set to expire at the end of this month had Pelosi not extended it again. For each extension, Pelosi has been required to obtain confirmation from the House sergeant-at-arms and the Capitol physician that the COVID pandemic still warrants a public health emergency. The rule was initially designed...

Rep. Carter intended to vote against the $1.9 billion bill, but his proxy vote, which could have sunk the bill, wasn't counted. California Republican Rep. Ken Calvert "forgot" to cast a proxy vote on behalf of Texas Republican Rep. John Carter that would have sunk the $1.9 billion post-Jan. 6 supplemental security spending bill, Just the News has learned. Carter's letter granting authority to cast his vote by proxy to Calvert was submitted to the House clerk and accepted. Carter successfully voted by proxy Thursday on "the motion to recommit" that preceded the final vote on the supplemental security bill....

The House of Representatives on Friday passed a historic piece of legislation , allowing members to vote by proxy and conduct hearings remotely for the next 45 days because of the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic. Under the new rules, which passed mostly along party lines, congressmen and women can give written instructions to another member in the chamber to vote on their behalf. One representative can serve as a proxy voter for up to 10 other members at any given time. Those who choose to work remotely can still participate in open hearings and cast committee votes. Closed hearings, however, will...

Rep. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, who is expecting a baby in December, is being denied a request to vote by proxy in the House Democratic Caucus leadership and committee member elections next week—even though her doctor advises she can't travel to Washington in the late stages of her pregnancy. The Iraq War veteran, who lost both legs when her helicopter was shot down in 2004, made the request in a letter to fellow Democrats. Her letter was read during a closed-door Democratic Caucus meeting on Thursday. But objections were raised, and the request was denied, with opponents including Democratic Steering...