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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 479 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 479

               Censuring Representative Bennie Thompson.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              June 7, 2023

Mr. Gaetz (for himself and Mr. Bishop of North Carolina) submitted the 
  following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Ethics

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
               Censuring Representative Bennie Thompson.

Whereas, on December 30, 2022, Representative Bennie Thompson, then Chair of the 
        Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United 
        States Capitol (``January 6th Committee''), sent a letter to the Biden 
        White House, along with property of the House of Representatives, in 
        violation of longstanding Rules of the House of Representatives, 
        including the Rules for the 117th Congress;
Whereas, on December 30, 2022, Representative Thompson also sent a similar 
        letter and records to the Department of Homeland Security, also in 
        violation of the Rules;
Whereas, as a committee chair, Representative Thompson was required, under rule 
        VII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, to turn over all 
        committee records to the Clerk of the House at the close of Congress, in 
        order to further transparency and to preserve the historical record of 
        Congress;
Whereas Representative Thompson intentionally violated this rule, as evidenced 
        by his letters to the executive branch, which expressly detail his 
        ``expectation'' that the House property improperly turned over to the 
        executive branch would eventually be turned over to the National 
        Archives, an expectation that could only have salience if the materials 
        turned over were, in fact, congressional records;
Whereas Congress still is unsure of the scope of the records kept or improperly 
        destroyed by the January 6th Committee, as evidenced by the May 18, 2023 
        letter from Representative Barry Loudermilk, chair of the Subcommittee 
        on Oversight of the Committee on House Administration, to the National 
        Archives requesting a catalogue of records produced by the January 6th 
        Committee; and
Whereas, under rule VII and rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives 
        for the 117th and 118th Congresses, the responsibility to ensure proper 
        recordkeeping by a committee resides with the committee chairperson, a 
        responsibility that Representative Thompson intentionally violated or 
        recklessly neglected: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That--
            (1) Representative Bennie Thompson of Mississippi be 
        censured;
            (2) Representative Bennie Thompson forthwith present 
        himself in the well of the House of Representatives for the 
        pronouncement of censure;
            (3) Representative Bennie Thompson be censured with the 
        public reading of this resolution by the Speaker; and
            (4) Representative Bennie Thompson be, and is hereby, 
        removed from the Committee on Homeland Security.
                                 <all>
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