Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) on Sunday defended his vote to censure Rep. Al Green (D-Texas), saying his fellow Democrat’s disruption during President Trump’s address to Congress was a “distraction” from the party’s strategy.
In an interview on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday,” anchor Chris Stirewalt asked Bera what he would say to Democrats who argue that the president “won’t play by the rules,” so “Democrats shouldn’t have to either.”
“I’d say we need radical civility,” Bera responded. “We need to stand up for the American people.”
“I’m all about let’s [protect] Medicaid,” he continued, “but what Al did became a distraction. Our caucus can’t be a distraction.”
Green was escorted from the chamber just minutes into the president’s address on Tuesday, after standing up and shouting at the president, “You have no mandate to cut Medicaid.”
The moment came as Trump was boasting about his 2024 election victory, calling it a “mandate” from the American people.
The following day, a House Republican introduced a resolution to censure Green for his protest. The House adopted the resolution with a 224-198-2 vote. Ten Democrats, including Bera, joined Republicans in supporting the measure.
Bera said Democrats have a strategy to highlight possible cuts to Medicaid and urged discipline in their execution of that message.
“We’ve got a strategy, and we’re executing it,” Bera said. “We know every vulnerable Republican. We know how many Medicaid patients are in each of their districts. We’re going to make sure that if Donald Trump, Elon Musk, congressional Republicans cut Medicaid, that their constituents who lose their health care coverage actually know who did that.”
“That’s the strategy. That’s what we should be doing. Let’s not be a distraction, and what Al did — he’s a friend — but that was a distraction,” Bera added.
The Hill is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns NewsNation.