JUST IN: House Rejects Move to Censure Maxine Waters

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Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) narrowly survived a Tuesday effort by House Republicans to censure her for comments she made encouraging protesters to “get more confrontational.”

The House took a 216-210 vote along party lines to table the censure resolution, effectively killing it. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) had proposed the resolution to condemn Waters, saying her comments “raised the potential for violence, directed lawlessness, and may have interfered with a co-equal branch of government.”

The move came after a speech Waters delivered to protesters in Minnesota over the weekend, telling them, “We’ve got to get more active, we’ve got to get more confrontational. We’ve got to make sure that they know that we mean business.”

Legal experts noted that defense attorneys for Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer found guilty on Tuesday of manslaughter in the case George Floyd’s 2020 death, could claim Waters’ remarks unduly influenced jurors when they seek a mistrial. That dynamic provoked Judge Peter Cahill, who presided over Chauvin’s trial, to complain about Waters on Monday.

“I wish elected officials would stop talking about this case, especially in a manner that’s disrespectful to the rule of law, and to the judicial branch and our function,” Cahill said from his perch in the courtroom. “I think if they want to give their opinions, they should do so in a respectful … manner that is consistent with their oath to the Constitution, to respect a co-equal branch of government. Their failure to do so, I think, is abhorrent.”