WASHINGTON — The battle over a push to allow new and soon-to-be parents in Congress to cast votes from outside Washington is entering a new front after President Donald Trump broke with Speaker Mike Johnson to back the idea, days after the House GOP leader’s attempt to quickly ax the resolution was defeated. 

What You Need To Know

  • The battle over a push to allow new and soon-to-be parents in Congress to cast votes from outside Washington is entering a new front after President Donald Trump broke with Speaker Mike Johnson to back the idea
  • The legislation’s biggest Republican advocate, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, swiftly took to X to tout the support of Trump before providing an update that Johnson called her in the wake of the president’s backing to discuss limiting the resolution to apply solely to mothers, taking fathers out of the equation
  • Asked about the push, spearheaded by Luna and Democratic Rep. Brittany Pettersen of Colorado, Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Thursday, that he would defer to the speaker to make any decisions on it but added he “liked the idea" and he would "agree with it"
  • Johnson on Friday, however, muddied the water on the president’s stance in a post on X in which he thanked Trump for his leadership and appeared to be quoting him when he wrote “‘“Mike, you have my proxy on proxy voting'"
  • Johnson, who has been steadfastly against the resolution and what is known as proxy voting in general, sought to swiftly put the resolution to bed this week by bringing a procedural vote to the floor but suffered defeat in his effort when nine Republicans joined with all Democrats to rebuff his plan

The legislation’s biggest Republican advocate, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, swiftly took to X to tout the support of Trump before providing an update that Johnson called her, after the president’s backing, to discuss limiting the resolution to apply solely to mothers, taking fathers out of the equation. 

Luna, who had proposed that both mothers and fathers be given more leniency, appeared open to the idea of focusing the new rules on “new moms who cannot travel because of health concerns.”

“This is smart,” she wrote on X. “Only 13 members of Congress have given birth while serving in U.S. history.”

The Florida Republican, who gave birth while in office in 2023, went on to say she told Johnson that any potential vote on the resolution “should NOT, in any way, interfere with legislation being passed for President Trump.”

Johnson on Friday, however, muddied the water on the president’s stance in a post on X in which he thanked Trump for his leadership and appeared to be quoting him when he wrote, "Mike, you have my proxy on proxy voting.’”

“Democrats tried proxy voting before, and it was terribly abused. We cannot open that Pandora’s box again,” the speaker added, seemingly in his own words. 

Asked about the push, spearheaded by Luna and Democratic Rep. Brittany Pettersen of Colorado, Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Thursday that he would defer to the speaker to make any decisions on it but added he “liked the idea.” 

“If you’re having a baby, I think you should be able to call in and vote,” Trump said. “I’m in favor of that, but I understand some people aren’t. I’m not involved in the issue.” 

The president noted he spoke with Luna and said he didn’t know why the push had become so controversial. 

Luna thanked the president for supporting the “pro-family resolution!” on X before adding that it would “help preserve our majority to pass the president’s agenda.”

Although boosted by the addition of two Republicans who won special elections in Florida this week, the House’s thin GOP majority — and thus its slim margin for defections — has been a topic of concern for the president and the party as it looks to pass Trump’s legislative priorities in Congress.  

Johnson, who has been steadfastly against the resolution and what is known as proxy voting in general, sought to swiftly put the resolution to bed this week by bringing a procedural vote to the floor but suffered defeat in his effort when nine Republicans joined with all Democrats to rebuff his plan. The speaker consequently canceled all other votes in the House for the rest of the week. 

The bipartisan resolution would give lawmakers who are new or expecting parents a 12-week window in which they do not need to be present at the Capitol to vote but instead are allowed to cast them remotely. 

Johnson and other Republicans — many of whom are firmly opposed to voting by proxy, which became particularly controversial during the COVID-19 pandemic — have argued the move “doesn’t fit with the language of the Constitution” and could lead to additional exceptions that enable lawmakers to vote from outside the Capitol. Former Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California implemented proxy voting in May 2020 amid the pandemic, a move that was then ended by former Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy in January 2023. 

“I think at some point you’ve just got to do your job," Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, told reporters last month. "Otherwise, step aside and let somebody else do the job."

In the face of opposition from the speaker, Luna launched an effort to use an uncommon method for forcing legislation to the House floor that bypasses leadership, known as a discharge petition. She officially garnered enough signatures from fellow House members to successfully force a vote last month. She also noted at the time that she removed a quorum clause from the measure specifically to address GOP concerns about its constitutionality. 

A dozen House Republicans, including Luna, bucked Johnson to sign onto the petition while the rest of the signatures came from Democrats. The maneuver’s success is rare in history.