Steube Proposes Rule To Bar Members Who Refuse Oath Of Office

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., is preparing to introduce a House rules amendment that would block newly elected members of Congress from taking their seats if they refuse to swear the constitutional oath of office.

Steube announced the idea during an interview with commentator Benny Johnson, arguing that the oath required of every member of Congress is not symbolic or optional.

“Every member of Congress has to swear an oath to protect and uphold the Constitution,” Steube said.

“If she is refusing to do that, she should not be seated. I think we should pass a rule,” he continued.

“This program has given me the idea to file an amendment to the rules.”

Steube later doubled down in a post on X, making clear that he believes the House should take formal action to prevent anti-constitutional radicals from entering Congress without honoring the oath.

“The oath to defend the Constitution isn’t optional,” he wrote. “If you’re elected to Congress but refuse to swear it, you shouldn’t be sworn in!!”

“I’m calling for a House rules change to ensure anyone who refuses the oath is barred from taking their seat.”

Steube’s comments were aimed at Democratic Socialist congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, whose political record has drawn sharp criticism from conservatives.

Steube argued that Avila Chevalier’s public associations and past statements raise serious questions about whether she could honestly swear to support and defend the Constitution.

According to Steube, Avila Chevalier founded Columbia University Apartheid Divest, known as CUAD.

He pointed to the group’s published platform, which includes statements calling for “Death to America,” the “total eradication of Western Civilization,” and the use of militant force to achieve those objectives.

Steube also referenced previously reported social media posts attributed to Avila Chevalier, including one in which she allegedly joked about using an American flag as a napkin.

“These people are incompatible with our country and cannot uphold their oath of office,” Steube said.

For Steube and other conservatives, the issue goes beyond one candidate. It raises a broader question about whether people who openly embrace anti-American rhetoric should be permitted to enter Congress while refusing or undermining the oath every member is required to take.

Article VI of the Constitution requires members of Congress to take an oath or affirmation to support the Constitution before assuming office.

The current oath requires lawmakers to swear that they will “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” and “bear true faith and allegiance to the same.”

Steube’s proposed rule would address situations in which a member-elect refuses to take that oath.

He has not yet released the full text of the amendment or explained how the rule would handle disputes involving a member’s intent, past statements, or public record.

Still, the basic principle behind the proposal is straightforward: Congress should not seat anyone who refuses to swear loyalty to the Constitution.

Avila Chevalier recently won her Democratic primary in New York and is expected to compete in the general election for a U.S. House seat.

If elected, she would be required to take the constitutional oath before being sworn into office.

For conservatives, Steube’s proposal is a necessary response to the rise of candidates whose politics appear increasingly hostile to America’s founding principles, national sovereignty, law enforcement, and constitutional order.

The left often insists that its most radical candidates are merely activists seeking reform.

But when public records include rhetoric attacking America itself, conservatives argue voters and lawmakers have a right to ask whether those candidates can faithfully uphold the Constitution they would be sworn to defend.

The oath of office is not a formality.

It is a binding promise to the American people.

Steube is now pushing the House to make sure that promise still means something.

https://x.com/RepGregSteube/status/2070118119230599574?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2070118119230599574%7Ctwgr%5E8c7ac628bfadb83fb4f7d014f3199b5c99a3ab49%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fconservativebrief.com%2Fgreg-steube-102353%2F

Whether House leadership will consider Steube’s proposed rules amendment remains unclear.

The House adopts its rules at the beginning of each new Congress, and any changes would require approval by a majority of the chamber.