House Republicans explode with rage over new rule that lets members vote remotely

On Friday, the House of Representatives passed a historic new rule allowing members to vote remotely as a safety precaution against the coronavirus pandemic. The basic system will be that members who are not present can transmit a document to the House clerk authorizing another member who is present to cast their vote for them.

But several House Republicans took to Twitter to proclaim the whole thing was a sinister conspiracy to give Democrats more power. Despite the fact that the provision contains clear rules requiring any representative to authorize another to cast their vote, they claimed it would somehow lead to corruption:

One Republican lawmaker, Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-PA), went so far as to demand the Senate not take up any bill passed using this rule.

Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) cast it as a way for Democrats to avoid doing their job — even though millions of Americans in the private sector are also currently doing their jobs remotely.