A truly wild scene unfolded at the Georgia State Capitol on Thursday when state Sen. Colton Moore was arrested after attempting to enter the House chamber.
it was all like that caught on video And it quickly spread on social media.
Moore, who had previously been ejected from the chamber for daring to allege corruption against former House Speaker David Ralston, was about to attend Gov. Brian Kemp’s State of the Union address.
Mr. Ralston was replaced by Republican Speaker of the House John Burns, who ordered that Mr. Moore be banned unless he formally apologized to Mr. Ralston’s family and supporters.
It is unclear what legal basis there is for this ban. What’s more, it’s based in reality. It is not the nature of a representative body to exclude senators from the chamber where they are supposed to serve the people.
And Mr. Moore intended to challenge the order.
Colton Moore forced out
Republican Sen. Colton Moore attempted to defy the ban, leading to a physical altercation in which he was forced to the ground by House staff and Georgia State Patrol troopers.
Moore tried to argue that House rules cannot supersede the constitutional mandate of a joint session. Morally, if not ethically, he is right.
As a result of the collision, Moore was charged with a misdemeanor count of willful obstruction of a law enforcement officer and taken into custody.
Watch the wild incident unfold below…
— Greg Bluestein (@bluestein) January 16, 2025
It is clear that one of the men in the video pushed Moore to the floor. At that point, they argue, things had gone too far. Colton agrees.
“It’s gone too far,” Moore said. “I have an obligation to be in that room. I represent the 200,000 people in northwest Georgia who duly elected me here today.”
RELATED: Social media posts showing Fulton County Prosecutor Fani Willis questioning 2020 election
embarrassing for georgia
For the state of Georgia, watching a lawmaker brawl in the hallway trying to ban a lawmaker after angering one of his cronies is beyond embarrassing. Those who have been burned should be extremely embarrassed.
Lt. Gov. Bert Jones (R) seemed to agree, condemning the arrests.
“All 56 elected senators and 180 elected members of the House of Representatives are entitled to the opportunity to fulfill their responsibilities to attend a joint session of the General Assembly,” Jones said. atlanta journal constitution.
He continued, “There is real work to be done this session, and the focus should be on serving the people of Georgia, not personal grievances or egos.”
Burns defended the lawsuit; states“Integrity and civility in this House are non-negotiable terms.”
But Burns and the Georgia Republican Party may have something else on their plate that makes their dissatisfaction unsettling. Colton Moore is the person who initiated the investigation into Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis following legal action against former President Donald Trump.
Moore was shot Indefinite suspension He was elected by the Georgia Senate Republican Caucus because of his support for this investigation. The caucus has criticized Moore, saying his campaign has misled both Georgians and the nation, escalated tensions and hostility, and endangered the safety of his caucus members and their families. insisted.
Mr. Moore dubbed Republicans who opposed the investigation “RINOs” (Republicans in Name Only) and rallied his supporters to push for an investigation into Mr. Willis.
Turns out he was right. Willis was pursuing illegal and malicious prosecution. And the RINOs didn’t want to intervene to do anything about it.
Ironically, Mr. Burns should be removed from the chamber until he apologizes to Mr. Moore.
