Committee removals now target rhetoric and political disputes, with Rep. Omar’s Charlie Kirk comments as the latest flashpoint. 

In the aftermath of the tragic and shocking killing of Charlie Kirk, most leaders chose unity over division. Many reached across the aisle and jointly condemned political violence, no matter which party it comes from. 

And then there’s Rep. Ilhan Omar, a member of the far-left “Squad.” Less than 24 hours after the shooting, Rep. Omar went on a podcast to mock tributes to Kirk, dismissing portrayals of him as a civil debater and criticizing people for not mentioning his alleged history of “hateful rhetoric.” 

Rep. Omar also shared a video calling Kirk a “reprehensible human being,” a “stochastic terrorist,” and blaming Kirk’s rhetoric for his shooting.  

Those remarks and actions prompted conservative Rep. Nancy Mace to introduce a resolution to kick Rep. Omar off the House Budget and Education & Workforce Committees. Rep. Mace accused Rep. Omar of defending political violence and celebrating murder. 

If the measure passes, it will be only the seventh time in modern history that the House has formally stripped a member of committee seats. In past years, members typically only lost committee assignments if they were indicted for crimes. However, Congress has lately become more willing to sanction members for inflammatory rhetoric.   

Indeed, all three members who were removed from committee assignments before 2021 ended up being sentenced to prison for their charges. The votes to remove them were non-controversial.  

But that changed in 2021, when Democrats began using committee removal to punish Republicans for inflammatory statements. In two hotly contested votes: 

  • 11 Republicans joined Democrats to kick Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene off her committees for endorsing conspiracy theories and past social-media posts suggesting violence against political opponents. 
  • 2 Republicans joined Democrats to remove Rep. Paul Gosar from committees for posting an edited anime video that depicted him attacking Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and President Biden. 

Neither faced criminal charges, and both are still in Congress today.  

When Republicans regained control of the House in 2023, they were quick to seek retribution. Seizing on Rep. Omar’s past anti-Semitic and anti-Israel comments, the House removed her from the Foreign Affairs committee on a party-line vote.   

Rep. Omar did not face criminal charges for her statements about Israel or Charlie Kirk, and she is still in Congress today. 

What began as a safeguard for keeping indicted lawmakers off important panels is now a flashpoint in the culture wars of Capitol Hill. Each new case raises the stakes, inviting the next majority to answer in kind.