On Tuesday, the House passed new legislation aimed at increasing protections and security for Supreme Court justices and their families, less than a week after a man was arrested for plotting to kill Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The bill was passed 396-27 with unanimous support on the side of Republicans.
The bill is now moving to President Biden for final approval. The primary purpose of the bill is to provide 24-hour protection for both Supreme Court members and their immediate families, similar to certain members of the executive and legislative branches.
The measure had already unanimously passed the Senate just days after the Supreme Court leak of the draft suggesting it intended to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The leak sparked significant backlash from pro-choice activists across the nation with protests taking place outside of the Supreme Court within hours of it going live. In the days that followed, a left-wing group under the moniker “Ruth sent us” in reference to the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, published the addresses of all six conservative Supreme Court justices, and called on its members to protest outside of the justices’ private residences. Many of these addresses would later be visited by the group.
After several weeks of such protests, a man was arrested near the home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Nicholas John Roske from Simi Valley, California, was arrested while in possession of a gun, ammunition, a knife, pepper spray, a screwdriver, zip ties and other gear. He had threatened to kill Justice Kavanaugh over his stance on abortion and Second Amendment rights and was charged with attempted murder of a federal justice.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., was among the Democrats who voted no on the bill. She defended her decision, and her attempts to block it, in an Instagram video posted Saturday.
“I wake up this morning and I start to hear murmurs that there is going to be an attempt to pass the Supreme Court supplemental protection bill the day after gun safety legislation for schools and kids and people is stalled,” she said in the video.
“Oh, so we can pass protections for us here easily, right? But we can’t pass protections for everyday people?” she continued. “I think not.”
Ocasio-Cortez was one of 27 Democrats who voted against the bill. The full list can be found below.
Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio
Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y.
Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo.
Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas
Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y.
Rep. Chuy Garcia, D-Ill.
Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas
Rep. Joshua Gottheimer, D-N.J.
Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz.
Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash.
Rep. Brenda Lawrence, D-Mich.
Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
Rep. Tom Malinowski, D-N.J.
Rep. Marie Newman, D-Ill.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J.
Rep. Donald Payne, D-N.J.
Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass.
Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J.
Rep. Albio Sires, D-N.J.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich.
Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif.
Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y.
Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif.
Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J.
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