A GOP Representative has put forth a resolution in the House to ban members of Congress “from bringing or displaying a flag of a foreign nation on the House floor.”
The resolution comes as a reaction to the recent event where House Democrats, along with a handful of Republicans, waved Ukrainian flags following the House’s approval of a $95 billion foreign aid package. This package allocates $61 billion to support its fight against Russia’s invasion.
“On the floor of the United States House of Representatives, there should only be one flag on display: ours,” Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) said in a press release on April 26 when introducing the bill. “We make serious decisions on behalf of the American people and their taxpayer dollars on the House floor.”
“This business should be carried out beneath no other banner than our stars and stripes to remind us of who we represent and why this nation is the greatest in the history of the world. I’m glad to have earned the support of dozens of my colleagues who join me in standing up for the American people and putting our nation before all others,” Ms. Cammack added.
The resolution requires that House members refrain from bringing or displaying flags of any foreign nation, regardless of size, during House sessions. The enforcement of this proposed ban will be overseen by the House sergeant-at-arms.
Exceptions are limited to the wearing of a lapel pin featuring a foreign nation’s flag by House members, as well as the use of a depiction of a foreign flag as part of an exhibit during a speech or debate, in accordance with House rules.
House Democrats have faced criticism for waving Ukrainian flags in the House chamber following the vote on the foreign aid package.
On April 20, immediately following the vote in the House, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) delivered a forceful response to the Ukraine flag-waving incident as she grabbed the microphone and shouted to her fellow lawmakers to “put those [expletive] flags down.”
Later, she took to social media platform X to express her sentiments, stating, “It is a disgrace to display any other flag than the American flag in the House Chamber!”
Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) also criticized the action. “Ukrainian flags fly in the chamber of the UNITED STATES House of Representatives as they vote to send more of your hard-earned money to a corrupt foreign regime,” Mr. Paul wrote in a post on X. “And just like that they shout ‘UKRAINE! UKRAINE!’ while happily working to secure Ukraine’s borders, not ours.”
Ms. Cammack’s bill garnered backing from several GOP co-sponsors, who condemned the actions of House Democrats. Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.) remarked, “It is unacceptable for a Member to be waving any flag on the House floor that is not the American flag.” Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) echoed this sentiment, declaring, “Members of Congress should never wave the flag of another nation on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.”
Three days following the House’s approval of the foreign aid package, the Senate passed the legislation with a vote of 79–18. President Joe Biden promptly signed the bill into law on April 24.
The package allocates $61 billion to Ukraine, $26 billion to Israel, and $8 billion to Taiwan. Additionally, the bill includes provisions for a potential TikTok ban and measures permitting the seizure of frozen Russian assets to aid in Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts.
The United States celebrates Flag Day on June 14th annually. President Woodrow Wilson issued a presidential proclamation on June 14, 1916, establishing it as National Flag Day.
In 1949, Congress approved a bill making June 14th National Flag Day, a designation signed into law by President Harry Truman. The legislation also mandated that the president issue an annual proclamation commemorating the day.
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