Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) intensified her public disagreement with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), threatening to bring House proceedings to a standstill unless he permits proxy voting for new parents, NBC News reported. Luna’s confrontation highlights a brewing dispute among Republicans concerning legislative participation rights for lawmakers with newborn children.
The proxy voting bill, introduced by Democratic Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-CO), who herself became a mother in January, aims to allow proxy voting for new parents up to 12 weeks postpartum. It also covers proxy voting prior to childbirth if medical issues arise. Co-sponsors of the bill include Luna and Reps. Sara Jacobs (D-CA) and Mike Lawler (R-NY).
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Pettersen notably brought her newborn son onto the House floor during recent votes to underscore the urgency and necessity of remote voting options. Despite bipartisan support, Speaker Johnson firmly opposes the measure. During a private GOP meeting on Tuesday, he reportedly discouraged Republicans from backing Luna’s proposal.
According to NBC News, Johnson explained, “We want to make it as easy as possible for young parents to be able to participate in the process. But proxy voting, in my view, is unconstitutional.” This argument aligns with Johnson’s previously stated stance on proxy voting.
Reacting sharply to Johnson’s position, Luna took to the social media platform X to challenge the Speaker publicly. Luna revealed that Johnson himself previously utilized proxy voting during the COVID-19 pandemic when the measure was temporarily permitted.
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“.@SpeakerJohnson is a kind man and his heart is in the right spot, but he’s wrong on proxy voting for new parents,” Luna posted. She supported her claim by sharing documents confirming Johnson’s past use of proxy voting, stating, “He argues it’s ‘unconstitutional’ but has done it several times. Since the case is being made to the public via the press, I’m going to do the same.”
Luna escalated her warnings further, indicating she would potentially halt all legislative business until a compromise is reached. Addressing reporters, Luna starkly declared, “If people want to do that, then, you know, you have a two-seat majority, so good luck passing anything. If they want to play hardball, let’s play f—— hardball.”
This standoff underscores ongoing challenges within the narrow Republican House majority, spotlighting internal divisions as lawmakers struggle to balance policy, personal circumstances, and ideological considerations.
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