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The previous year in the House of Representatives has entered the historical record. Lawmakers established new marks for the most extended oration and the lengthiest voting session, and oversaw the lengthiest government shutdown.

Furthermore, legislators devoted significant time seeking to discipline colleagues through disciplinary motions, the body's formal procedure for rebuke. A review of legislative databases reveals a minimum of 17 moves since the year's beginning to formally disapprove of a member via a reprimand or a more informal statement of disapproval.

If a censure measure passes by a majority of the chamber, the subject of the resolution must stand before the speaker's podium as the speaker informs them that they have been punished for their improper actions. That's as far as the practical repercussions – they retain their seat and their voting privileges, but potentially damaging their standing.

While nearly all of these gained approval, the flurry grew so intense that by the year's close, a group of lawmakers from both parties introduced a bill to modify the standing orders to raise the threshold for condemnation motions to pass. “How about we halt the circular firing squad in the House?” questioned one of the bill's sponsors.

Below is an examination at the claimed misconduct at the core of the wave of reprimands:

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Calling a Figure a ‘Offensive Name’

The initial condemnation effort of the year came in February targeting a Democratic lawmaker. The measure alleged the official of “encouraging hostility against a specific federal appointee”. The resolution referenced an occasion during a congressional hearing where the congressperson made a derogatory comment about the figure in a rather roundabout fashion, as well as a subsequent comment about using “actual weapons” to a partisan battle. The chamber never considering the measure.

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Yelling at the President

While giving a speech to a gathering of Congress, a Democratic lawmaker disrupted the president, yelling “he lacks a popular mandate” while waving a staff in the air. The presiding officer ordered the member escorted out. Subsequently, multiple censures were filed aimed at the lawmaker. Shortly thereafter, the legislature voted for one of these motions, with a number of members of the representative's party casting yes votes alongside the opposing party. This was the single reprimand to be successfully passed during the year.

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Resorting to Ethnic Tropes

Just days after the earlier reprimand, a resolution was introduced against a representative for statements made about the individual who was reprimanded. The proposal alleged the member of using language that was “disparaging, derogatory, and racist toward another member of Congress”. This measure never came up for a vote on the House floor.

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Mocking a Governor's Physical Condition

Another proposed censure centered on claimed insulting nicknames made by a lawmaker about a governor who is a wheelchair user. The comments were viewed as profoundly inappropriate and prompted a disciplinary motion that also did not come up a floor vote.

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Confrontation with Immigration Authorities

A number of censure resolutions were proposed against a representative after she was detained and faced felony charges following an confrontation outside a federal detention facility. One of these motions was brought up in the House, but was killed thanks to a coalition of one party and a handful of representatives from the party that introduced it. This represented the first of several occasions where lawmakers crossed party lines to defeat a condemnation effort.

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Allegations of Racism

A lawmaker was the focus of separate reprimand efforts over the warmer months for bigoted remarks made about elected officials of color. The posts included insulting labels and calls for deportation. None of these measures was put up for a vote.

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Questioning a Late Activist Character

In the wake of a controversial individual's death, a condemnation motion was introduced against a representative for comments that were deemed “derogatory” toward the deceased individual and those mourning him. For another time, the measure was defeated with the votes of a handful of representatives from the party that introduced it. One of those who voted against the censure remarked that the right answer to “reprehensible speech” is not censorship, but “additional dialogue”.

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‘Compromising the Process of a Free and Fair Election’

The barrage of condemnations peaked late in the year when, amid a pivotal vote, a congresswoman went to the House floor to allege that a senior member had arranged to step down in a manner to ensure a chosen replacement would be win his congressional seat. The measure voiced condemnation of this behavior for “subverting the system of a open electoral contest”. This measure generated controversy but ended up being approved, with votes from the majority of the minority party and a significant number of members from the complainant's political affiliation.

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Texting a Notorious Figure

As legislation to force the disclosure of sealed records related to convicted criminal Jeffrey Epstein was close to approval, it was revealed that a congresswoman had been in text communication with Epstein during a official proceeding. Capitalizing on the situation, the other party members filed a reprimand motion against the delegate. This attempt failed thanks to a unified front from the lawmaker's party and the votes of a handful of lawmakers from the resolution's authors.

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A Wide Range of Supposed Wrongdoings

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