Pennsylvania Democrats eject GOP lawmaker over patriotic flag suit

A Pennsylvania state lawmaker says he was ordered off the House floor this week for wearing a red, white and blue suit jacket ahead of the nation’s 250th birthday, touching off a partisan spat in Harrisburg days before the July Fourth holiday.

State Rep. Eric Davanzo, Westmoreland Republican, wore the American flag-themed jacket and a matching star-spangled tie to Tuesday’s session, telling reporters he wanted to mark the country’s semiquincentennial. According to Mr. Davanzo, House Speaker Joanna McClinton found his jacket, which featured red and white stripes like an American flag, along with a blue tie with white stars, to violate House rules, and he was ultimately told by a House security guard to either remove the jacket or leave the floor. He chose to walk off rather than comply. 

Mr. Davanzo, who represents the 58th District in Westmoreland County, said he had walked the chamber greeting colleagues before being told that Ms. McClinton, Philadelphia Democrat, wanted him off the floor unless he removed the coat. He later posted a video to Facebook saying he “will never apologize for putting patriotism before politics.”

A spokesperson for Ms. McClinton defended the move by casting it as a matter of decorum amid ongoing budget talks, saying House Democrats “came to Harrisburg this week to do the serious work of passing a responsible budget,” and that “some House Republicans showed up in costumes while the Senate Republicans took an early holiday vacation.”

Mr. Davanzo rejected the “costume” characterization, arguing the House has permitted other forms of themed attire, including tennis shoes, top hats and camouflage jackets on the floor. He also noted that Democratic members had been encouraged to wear Pride-colored clothing for a House photo earlier in June and argued the same latitude should extend to patriotic dress ahead of the Fourth of July. Fellow Republicans Timothy O’Neal and Stephanie Borowitz backed him publicly, with Mr. O’Neal saying that “as the nation approaches its 250th birthday, apparently patriotic attire is not allowed.”

The episode landed in the middle of Pennsylvania’s closely divided Capitol, where Democrats hold a one-seat House majority and Republicans control the Senate by four seats, and comes as the state and federal government both plan large-scale events for America’s 250th anniversary this weekend, including Gov. Josh Shapiro’s America250PA concerts and fairs from Pittsburgh to Wilkes-Barre.

It is not the first time this year Mr. Davanzo has drawn attention with a patriotism-themed proposal. He chairs the America First Caucus in the state House and in June introduced the “$250 for America’s 250th Act,” which would send $250 checks to Pennsylvania households using what he said was a $930 million state budget surplus.