Miami Republican U.S. Rep. Carlos Giménez wants his Democratic colleague, U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez of Illinois, off the House Homeland Security Committee on, arguing her declaration of Guatemalan pride disqualifies her from the panel.
He just introduced legislation to remove her and called her remarks a betrayal of her oath of office.
Ramirez, who has since been beset by right-wing vitriol online over her statement, says her words were purposely misconstrued to attack her.
The comment in question came during an event in Mexico City this week. Ramirez said in Spanish, “Yo soy una Guatemalteca con much orgullo, primero que soy Americana.”
Her detractors, including Giménez, actor James Woods and conservative commentator Matt Walsh — the latter two of whom called for Ramirez’s deportation — claim that her comments translate into, “I am a Guatemalan with great pride, before being American.”
Some Spanish speakers have argued the exact translation is, in fact, “I am a Guatemalan with great pride, but first, I am an American.”
Giménez, the only Cuban-born member of Congress and Chair of the Homeland Security Committee’s Maritime and Transportation Securities Subcommittee, bashed Ramirez’s assertion as disloyal.
“When a Member of Congress openly declares allegiance to a foreign nation over the United States, it is not only unacceptable — it is disqualifying for service on a committee tasked with securing our homeland,” he said in a statement.
“Representative Ramirez’s conduct is unbecoming of any Member of Congress and must result in her immediate removal from the Committee on Homeland Security.”
Giménez’s resolution invokes Rule XXIII of House Rules, which requires members to “behave at all times in a manner that shall reflect creditably on the House.” The measure argues Ramirez violated that rule by expressing loyalty to another country while holding a sensitive assignment on the Homeland Security Committee.
If passed, the resolution would formally remove Ramirez from the panel.
Ramirez attended the second annual Panamerican Congress in Mexico City early this week alongside fellow progressive “Squad” members U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, who represent Minnesota and Michigan, respectively.
Ramirez’s remarks there swiftly drew criticism from conservatives, including Fox News contributors, Republican House members and right-leaning influencers on social media.
She defended her comments in a statement Monday, calling the uproar “a weak attempt to silence my dissent and invalidate my patriotic criticism of the nativist, white supremacist, authoritarians in government.”
“No one questions when my white colleagues identify as Irish-American, Italian-American, or Ukrainian-American to honor their ancestry. … Only those who believe America should not include the children of immigrants or be diverse would attack me — and Americans like me — for honoring my roots,” she said.
“It is the definition of hypocrisy that members of Congress — who betray their oath each day they enable (President Donald) Trump — are attacking me for celebrating my Guatemalan-American roots.”
Giménez, who came to the U.S. as a child refugee from Cuba, rejected that framing.
“Everything I am, I owe to this exceptional country of limitless opportunities,” he said. “Only in America could a Cuban refugee become a firefighter, fire chief, city manager, county commissioner, county mayor, and yes, even a Member of Congress.”
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