The House of Representatives narrowly voted on Wednesday to table a resolution to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) over her recent comments regarding Charlie Kirk.
The move to table the measure passed by a vote of 214 to 213, effectively blocking it from advancing to a full House-wide vote.
Four House Republicans joined Democrats in voting to table the resolution.
Those Republicans were Reps. Mike Flood (NE), Tom McClintock (CA), Jeff Hurd (CO), and Cory Mills (FL).
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) had introduced the resolution on Tuesday, using the “privileged” designation to force House leaders to consider it within two legislative days.
Mace’s resolution followed Omar’s remarks days after Kirk’s assassination, which drew widespread criticism from conservatives.
McClintock explained his vote against the measure in a statement to Fox News Digital.
While condemning Omar’s words, he said his opposition was grounded in First Amendment protections.
“Ilhan Omar’s comments regarding the assassination of Charlie Kirk are vile and contemptible. They deserve the harshest criticism of every man and woman of good will. But this disgusting and hateful speech is still speech and is protected by our First Amendment,” McClintock said.
He added, “Censure is formal punishment by the House and we have already gone too far down this road. Omar’s comments were not made in the House and even if they were, they broke no House rules.”
“A free society depends on tolerating ALL speech — even hateful speech — confident that the best way to sort good from evil is to put the two side by side and trust the people to know the difference.”
Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed during a college speaking event in Utah.
His death prompted a wave of responses from political leaders across the spectrum.
Fox News highlighted that in an interview with progressive news outlet Zeteo days after Kirk’s death, Omar referenced his past remarks, saying he had “downplayed slavery and what Black people have gone through in this country by saying Juneteenth shouldn’t exist.”
She also criticized portrayals of Kirk as merely a civil debater, stating, “There is nothing more effed up, you know, like, than to completely pretend that, you know, his words and actions have not been recorded and in existence for the last decade or so.”
Amid backlash over her interview, Omar later posted on X, “While I disagreed with Charlie Kirk vehemently about his rhetoric, my heart breaks for his wife and children.”
“I don’t wish violence on anyone. My faith teaches me the power of peace, empathy, and compassion.”
She continued, “Right-wing accounts trying to spin a false story when I condemned his murder multiple times is fitting for their agenda to villainize the left to hide from the fact that Donald Trump gins up hate on a daily basis.”
Mace’s resolution accused Omar of smearing Kirk and suggesting he bore responsibility for his own murder.
On the House floor, Mace read, “Charlie Kirk was a lifelong advocate for freedom of speech, civil political discourse and the political engagement of youth.”
“One day after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, Representative Ilhan Omar gave an interview on Zeteo’s town hall with Mehdi Hassan, in which she smeared Charlie Kirk and implied he was to blame for his own murder.”
Mace also accused Omar of amplifying a video that stated, “Don’t be fooled, these people don’t give a single s— about Charlie Kirk. They’re just using his death to further their Christo-fascist agenda.”
