OAN Roy Francis
UPDATED 11:30 AM – Thursday, April 13, 2023
Following a bipartisan vote, a Republican member of Arizona’s House of Representatives was expelled from the State House.
The Republican-controlled House voted Representative Liz Harris (R-Ariz.) out due to her “violating” House ethics rules by inviting Jacqueline Breger, who they labelled as a “conspiracy theorist,” to a hearing.
Breger had brought the claims of corruption and criminal activity perpetrated by Governor Katie Hobbs (D-Ariz.), which included taking bribes from a Mexican drug cartel.
The resolution to expel Harris, who was elected in November, said that she had brought “disrepute and embarrassment to the House of Representatives.” The resolution passed with 46 Arizona representatives voting to remove her, and only 13 members opposing her removal.
The House Ethics Committee, which is made up of three Republicans and two Democrats, have found that Harris violated ethics rules, which led to the full vote on the House floor.
Representative David Livingston (R-Ariz,) said that it is not personal, however the decision came down to “integrity.”
Harris fired back against the vote saying that she stands for “honesty and integrity” saying the report is false.
“I stand on honesty and integrity. The report is a lie,” she said to reporters who asked for her reaction to the vote. “God knows the truth. This was an example of how you need to toe the line. If you don’t toe the line, this is what happens.”
Representative Alex Kolodin (R-Ariz.) defended Harris before the vote took place saying that the “public will perceive that they don’t have a true voice,” since the person who they elected is being expelled for doing her job.
“They [the public] will perceive that they don’t have a true voice in this body because when they elect somebody to rock the boat, and she does it,” he said. “That member will be expelled. So, in order to protect this body, to preserve public trust and confidence in us and more importantly in the legislature as a means for being the peoples voice, and bringing about real change, I do sadly but resolutely vote no.”
Harris had represented one of the more competitive districts in the state. Now the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors will choose from a list of three Republican candidates, who were chosen by the Republican precinct committeemen from the district, to replace her.
The vote to expel Harris comes less than a week after two Tennessee Democrats were expelled from the Tennessee State House for disrupting proceedings while leading a protest for stricter gun control.
However, both representatives were later re-instated to their positions.
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