Washington — The House blocked an effort to formally censure Republican Rep. Cory Mills of Florida and strip him of his committee assignments over allegations related to federal contracting violations, stolen valor and assault.
GOP Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina introduced the censure resolution earlier Wednesday, citing troubling allegations against the congressman.
She introduced the resolution as privileged, meaning GOP leadership had two legislative days to hold a floor vote on the measure. Mills successfully maneuvered to effectively kill the resolution by referring it to the House Ethics Committee.
“All the accusations and false things that are being said will be proven to be absolutely false in many ways,” Mills said ahead of the vote. “And I have the evidence and receipts.”
The vote came hours after the Ethics Committee announced it is investigating Mills for alleged campaign finance violations, sexual misconduct and other potential wrongdoing. Mace called the investigation “a naked attempt to kill my resolution.”
Mills has faced a number of controversies this year, including allegations that he threatened to release nude photos of a former girlfriend, which prompted a judge to grant a protective order in October. The censure resolution also cites reports that Mills was investigated for potential domestic violence in February. Mills has denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime.
“Cory Mills’ alleged conduct makes him unfit to serve on any committee responsible for our national security,” Mace said in a statement.
“I will not stand by while women risk everything to come forward with credible allegations of abuse and threats. I will not stay silent while a Member of Congress may be lining his pockets through federal contracts. And I will not look the other way while allegations of stolen valor, a slap in the face to every veteran who earned their service and sacrifice, goes unchecked,” she said.
The financial allegations revolve around a report by a congressional watchdog in August 2024 that found Mills may have misrepresented information on his campaign finance disclosure forms and may have “entered into, held, or enjoyed contracts with federal agencies while he was a Member of Congress in violation of House rules, standards of conduct, and federal law.”
Mace’s resolution also stated that “individuals who served in the military with Representative Cory Mills have called into question the veracity of the account of events which formed the basis of a recommendation that … Mills receive an award of a Bronze Star, bestowed in 2021, for his service under enemy fire in Iraq in 2003.”
In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson earlier Wednesday, Mace expressed “grave concern regarding the fitness” of Mills and urged the Louisiana Republican to take action to remove him from his committee assignments. Mills serves on the Armed Services Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Mace’s effort followed attempts from Democrats to formally rebuke him in retaliation for censure measures that GOP members brought against Democrats for their conduct.
Democrats threatened to force a vote on another censure measure against Mills on Tuesday if Republicans had succeeded in censuring Del. Stacey Plaskett, a Democrat from the Virgin Islands. The push to punish Plaskett came after revelations that she was texting convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during a House Oversight Committee hearing in 2019. The messages were released last week by the House Oversight Committee, which has made tens of thousands of documents public as part of its investigation into the Epstein case.
U.S. House of Representatives
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