Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md.-1st, is rejecting calls for his resignation for continuing to argue against accepting the Electoral College vote from Pennsylvania just hours after a mob egged on by President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol and murdered a Capitol Police officer.
Those urging Harris to resign also note that he sought to instigate a physical confrontation on the House floor early Thursday morning after getting his feelings hurt for being called a liar.
In a statement issued Thursday afternoon, Harris said he would not resign, but also compared Wednesday’s deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol by armed insurrectionists to violent protests last summer.
Harris, in his written statement, said:
“I have routinely and consistently rejected violent protests, whether in the case of yesterday, or last summer.
“Democrats are calling for unity, yet also calling for the expulsion of Members who objected in yesterday’s Electoral College count. Today, some Marylanders are even calling for my resignation, which I will not do.
“My colleagues and I held legitimate Constitutional concerns about how the November election was conducted in certain states and felt compelled to highlight those concerns during the formal vote count. We did not call for the overthrowing of an election. Joe Biden will be President on January 20th.
“Some of my colleagues, including those still in the Maryland delegation, offered objections in 2017 when counting the electoral votes for President Trump. Congress is afforded the right to count, and object, to electoral votes, which we utilized yesterday to highlight concerns we had regarding the November election.
“There was nothing treasonous or seditious about it in 2017, nor this year.”
Harris backed objections to the electoral college counts from Arizona and Pennsylvania. GOP objections to the results from four other swing states — Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Wisconsin — did not get a debate or vote when those objections failed to get support from any U.S. senators.
Lawmakers had begun the debate on the objection to the Arizona count when the rioters broke out glass in doors and windows to illegally gain entry to the U.S. Capitol.
After order was restored, the debate continued and the objection was soundly rejected in both the House and Senate. As a result of the violence, several U.S. senators who had planned to join objections to one or more of five other swing states announced they would no longer support those efforts
However, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, who was the first lawmaker to call for objections to the Electoral College results, did sign on to the objection to the Pennsylvania results, leading to an early Thursday morning debate in the House.
Harris spoke animatedly in support of the objection about 25 minutes into the debate and began shouting nearly an hour later after Rep. Connor Lamb, a Pennsylvania Democrat, noted his Republican colleagues had lied during the debate.
That later prompted Rep. Morgan Griffith, a Virginia Republican to ask that Lamb’s remarks be stricken from the record. His request was denied by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who said it was not made in a timely manner.
As Lamb continued to speak, saying, “The truth hurts,” shouting could be hear in the House chamber.
Journalists who witnessed the incident said Harris shouted “He called me a liar” and made gestures indicating he wanted to fight.
Rep. Colin Allred, a Texas Democrat and former NFL linebacker, was among a dozen or more members from both sides who converged in the aisle near Harris.
The (Baltimore) Sun reported that Harris, in a written statement, said: “Nothing physical ever happened, or was going to happen. Mr. Allred stepped in only to ease tensions at the end of a difficult day.”
The Sun also reported that an Allred spokesman said Allred could be heard on video of the incident asking Harris: “Are you serious, man? Haven’t you had enough violence for today?”
The overwhelming majority of those commenting on a tweet from Harris with a link to his statement — including numerous commenters who said they were First District residents — urged the congressman to resign.
Here is a sample of those comments:
Gren Whitman says
Rep. Andrew P. Harris will now always be counted as a proud member of the Sedition Caucus. Sad.
Carla Massoni says
Resign.
Henry Sears says
To whom does one write to lend support for efforts to obtain a resignation from Representative Harris.
Carol Schroeder says
Since moving to the Eastern Shore 14 years ago I have seen so many opponents of Harris citing all his faults. And I agree with them How did he get re-elected? We need Stacy Abrams of Georgia or someone following her organizational playbook to help our District.
Carol Mylander says
Andy Harris lives on Western Shore.
Paul McDonald says
Mr, Harris,
Can you state one example of election fraud that lead you to believe the vote should have been delayed.
Just one will do.
Anne Bricker says
John’s article and the letters said it all.I am ashamed to be a constituent and will work like blazes to get you defeated. RESIGN
Diana Kunkel says
I realize that the 1st District usually sends a Republican to Congress. But why can’t the party nominate a candidate with *real* Republican principles who will put the country before Q-Anon, like Romney or Murkowski? Why do they keep choosing this guy?
Beryl Smith says
I tried. I voted for Wayne Gilchrest.
Deirdre LaMotte says
This conduct is done by a desperate man. I cannot imagine what goes through Harris’s mind but he is a useless legislator and
a political opportunist. Jesse Colvin was a solid opponent but no match to the up hill battle caused by gerrymandering. I’m at a loss…
Beryl Smith says
Equating BLM protestors with water bottles to a much larger crowd who tore down doors, broke windows, smashed their way into offices where they defiled the contents of same and came equipped with cuff links, guns, molotov coctails etc. is hardly the same!Harris is a bigoted embarrassment to those of us who live on the eastern shore.
Patricia Heaps says
Oh dear God! Spare me the outrage. Where was all the anguish and hand-wringing when the beloved BLM was burning cities this summer? There was no teeth-gnashing when the Kavanaugh hearings were interrupted by screaming harpies. What was it Kamala said? The protests must not stop or words to that effect – and she’s contributing to bailing them out. And now the censorship is over the top. You do realize it was the Nazis who celebrated silencing and imprisoning their opponents?
Deirdre LaMotte says
Oh, please spare the nation, thank you. Trump incited violence in an attempt to retain power, and any
elected person defending him is violating their oath to the Constitution. They want anarchy not democracy.
But Trumpies are a cult one can not reason with. They elected him to make our lives as miserable as theirs. So every horrible lie he tells and deceitful deed he does, they love.