WASHINGTON — The House Administration Committee is investigating why Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., pulled a fire alarm in a Capitol office building on Saturday, according to a post on social media by the committee.
Bowman’s office acknowledged he pulled the alarm, but suggested it was unintentional.
“Congressman Bowman did not realize he would trigger a building alarm as he was rushing to make an urgent vote,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “The Congressman regrets any confusion.”
“Rep. Jamal Bowman pulled a fire alarm in Cannon this morning,” an account controlled by the Republicans on the House Administration Committee wrote on X, the website formerly known as Twitter, including spelling the congressman’s first name incorrectly. “An investigation into why it was pulled is underway.”
The post was signed by committee Chairman Bryan Steil, R-Wis.
The U.S. Capitol Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The fire alarm sounded in the Cannon office building, which is connected to the Capitol via an underground tunnel, as the Republicans were trying to begin a vote on a 45-day spending measure to keep the government open.
Democrats appeared to try to delay starting the vote, which they had been given very little notice about. Many complained that Republicans were trying to vote before Democrats had time to read the bill.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader, delivered a 52-minute speech in what was seen as an effort to give his fellow members and staff time to figure out whether his party would support the bill.
Ultimately, the vote began two and a half hours after it was scheduled to start. And Democrats overwhelmingly voted in favor of the bill.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
