Louis Gohmert Has Had Enough Of The Sit-In

The Democratic sit-in at the House of Representatives turned into a screaming match late Wednesday night when Rep. Louie Gohmert began yelling at Democrats holding the House floor. Although the House's cameras, which normally broadcast via C-SPAN, were deactivated at the time, live feeds via Periscope showed the chaos that broke out when Gohmert, a Republican from Texas, began yelling about "radical Islam." He blamed radical beliefs for the recent shooting in Orlando, implying that the gun control measures Democrats were pushing for were not necessary.

Gohmert's outburst occurred around 11 p.m. Eastern time, nearly 12 hours after the sit-in began on Wednesday morning. Republicans, led by House Speaker Paul Ryan, had briefly tried to take back the floor and put an end to the demonstration by calling a vote for an unrelated resolution. After the House was declared back in recess, Democrats continued to take turns speaking out about the need for a vote on gun control legislation — but Gohmert had apparently had enough. He approached the podium where Democrats were speaking, shouting over and over that radical Islam, not the nation's current gun code, was to blame for the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, which occurred earlier this month at a gay nightclub near downtown Orlando.

As it turns out, this isn't the first time that Gohmert has bizarrely commanded the attention of the House floor. A few weeks ago, Gohmert addressed his colleagues in the House on the topic of space colonies and who should create them. (Hint: He doesn't want gay people being sent to establish those space colonies.)

In March, Gohmert voted against widely popular House bill that was intended to encourage the recruitment of female scientists. He claimed that the bill discriminated against young boys, comparing the debate over the House bill to the debate over Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I have a dream" speech during the civil rights era.

Tensions ran high in the House throughout Wednesday evening. The sit-in organized by Rep. John Lewis of Georgia led to a demonstration that seemed unprecedented in that body of Congress. At various points throughout the night, Republicans shouted over Democrats. At other times, Democrats shouted over Republicans. The chaos seemed to show no indication of slowing down as the clock neared midnight on the east coast.