What Should Paul Ryan Do About House Democrats' Gun Control ‘Sit-In’? — He Has a Few Options

What options does House Speaker Paul have as several Congressional Democrats have staged a sit-in on the House floor since late Wednesday morning, contending they aren't leaving until a vote is called on current gun control legislation?

The House has officially stood in recess since the Democrats took over the floor at 11:30 a.m. and lawmakers have missed voting and debating legislation. An aide in the House press gallery told TheBlaze Wednesday that lawmakers were still hoping to eventually get to some votes Wednesday evening, but the probability of that happening was uncertain.

But as Democrats show no sign of moving, one source close to House leadership told TheBlaze that Ryan was still deciding what his course of action would be, especially as he has a few options to consider.

1. Have protesters forcibly removed

Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.) told TheBlaze Wednesday that the "disruption" by Congressional Democrats was "beneath the dignity of the House and lacks the respect this chamber is owed" as she urged Ryan to have those participating in the sit-in physically removed.

"No member of Congress has a right to hold the People's House hostage for the sake of a political agenda," Black said. "I would urge Speaker Ryan to have the Sergeant at Arms remove members who are violating the rules of the House so that order can be restored and Congress can continue its business."

This photo provided by Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) shows Democrat members of Congress, including Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) participate in sit-down protest seeking a a vote on gun control measures, Wednesday, June 22, 2016, on the floor of the House on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Rep. Chellie Pingree via AP)

As Business Insider noted, House rules do stipulate that the speaker can clear the House floor by way of the sergeant-at-arms. In fact, the rules explicitly state:

"The Speaker shall preserve order and decorum and, in case of disturbance or disorderly conduct in the galleries or in the lobby, may cause the same to be cleared."

"Except as otherwise provided by rule or law, the Speaker shall have general control of the Hall of the House, the corridors and passages in the part of the Capitol assigned to the use of the House, and the disposal of unappropriated rooms in that part of the Capitol."

Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) said on social media Wednesday that she has been arrested during multiple protests in the past, including fighting to raise the minimum wage and ending genocide in Darfur, Sudan, and was prepared to be arrested again Wednesday.

"She is prepared to do whatever is necessary," Eric Harris, communications director for Moore, told TheBlaze Wednesday.

"We have no idea what's going to happen," he added. "It's extraordinary measures for an extraordinary time."

2. Cave into Democrats' demands

All it would take would be to simply call for a vote on the bipartisan "no fly, no buy" gun control legislation, multiple Democratic lawmakers and their aides said Wednesday.

Harris contended the situation lawmakers found themselves in by Wednesday afternoon was "unprecedented" and said anyone who pretended like they knew what was going to happen was "lying." The Democrats, Harris said, simply want a vote on the legislation and didn't speculate on if there was anything else Ryan could do to end the protest other than call for a vote.

Another aide to one of the Congressional Democrats leading the charge told TheBlaze that, while she could not speak as spokesperson for those protesting, the lawmakers did want House leadership to "take some kind of action, to bring some common-sense bill to the floor."

"To date, the House has taken absolutely no action to protect Americans," the aide said. "There are many proposals out there. They are asking the leadership to lead and do its job."

However, Ryan shrugged off the protest as simply a "publicity stunt" during an interview with CNN Wednesday evening that didn't seem too promising for Democrats who want him to call for a vote on the legislation.

"This is not a way to bring up legislation," Ryan said.

3. Ignore them until they leave

House Republicans are no stranger to sit-in themselves. In 2008, Republicans staged their own sit-in as they were irked that then House Speaker Nancy Pelosi refused to schedule a vote on off-shore drilling. After several hours of Congressional Democrats turning the lights off on their Republican counterparts, reportedly rousing speeches by GOP lawmakers and a rendition of "God Bless America," Republicans eventually packed it up and went home all on their own.

Dr. David Woodard, Thurmond professor of political science at Clemson University, told TheBlaze the removal of the lawmakers by police is not something that would "look good on television." He recalled that, as a child of the 1960s, the best course of action for Ryan would be to simply ignore the protesters.

"Such demonstrations require public attention," Woodard said. "When nothing happens, it becomes very tired television. The one percent wore out, the Vietnam demonstrators were ignored in occupation and the Civil Rights protests often lost steam if ignored."

And as the House went into recess with the protests, the House cut the microphones and the live camera feed to the sit-in, breaking off C-SPAN's video broadcast of the event. Many House Democrats broke the rules and decided to livestream their event themselves, but were eventually told by House security to stop recording and publishing videos.  

But leaving quietly and quickly on their own might not be the case this go-around as Pelosi announced Wednesday that they "will be here as long as it takes, every day."

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