Heads Are Rolling Now: Rep. Joe Wilson “Admonished”

By Stephen Kral on September 15th, 2009

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Rep. Joe Wilson of South Carolina was officially “admonished” today after a vote in the House. The vote, which was in regards to his “you lie!” outburst during President Barack Obama’s health care address to the nation last week, was predominately split down party lines, 240-179, with the exception of twelve Democrats voting “no” and seven Republicans voting “yes.” Lawmakers voting for the “admonishment” claim Wilson had breached a line of decorum whereas those voting against it thought the vote to be a political stunt.

But, do tell, what is an admonishment you ask? Well here’s the official word:

“Whereas the conduct of the Representative from South Carolina was a breach of decorum and degraded the proceedings of the joint session, to the discredit of the House: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, that the House of Representatives disapproves of the behavior of the Representative from South Carolina Mr. Wilson, during the joint session of Congress held on September 9, 2009.”

Well, there you have it. They “disapprove” of his actions. Looks like the Democrats really handed him the book this time. From what I hear, they may even call his mother – the horror! But to bring this a little closer to reality, there are typically three levels of punishment a member of the House of Representatives may received: a reprimand, censure or expulsion. In this case, Rep. Joe Wilson received neither of the three, but rather an “admonishment” which is even less severe than a reprimand.

What’s especially silly about this whole endeavor, though, is that the South Carolina Representative had previously apologized and the incident almost had been forgotten. Forgotten, that is, until he decided to recant his apology after discovering that, “Hey, I’m really popular all of a sudden.” I mean, who cares that his opponent raised record numbers the day after, or that those who now champion him also believe that our President wasn’t born in the United States and is, more than likely, a socialist-fascist-marxist-messiah-racist-terrorist-and-any-other-scary-’other’-type-thing-there-is-boogie-man? Apparently not Rep. Joe Wilson.

Which makes sense I guess. Joe the Plumber just wasn’t really working out anymore, and who knows, maybe Joe “YOU LIE!!” Wilson thought he could do just a little better. All that said, this whole admonished business is pretty silly, on both sides of the aisle. His outburst was rude and disrespectful (not to mention false), sure, but there’s no reason to waste a House vote admonishing him either. I mean, really. What end does this serve? (Other than perpetuating this story further, that is.)