‘Colonies problem’: Delegate’s microphone apparently cut after outburst during vote for Speaker of the House

U.S. Virgin Islands delegate Stacey Plaskett protested the non-voting status of the Virgin Islands and other U.S. territories on Friday, sparking mixed reactions after accusing the U.S. of the House of Representatives of having a “colony problem”.

The exchange came after Plaskett, a Democrat, came forward after the first roll call vote to point to what he said was a parliamentary investigation.

Plaskett then asked the Clerk of the House why she and other delegates from the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia were not asked to participate in the House Speaker’s vote.

Stacey Plaskett of the US Virgin Islands arrives on the Senate floor. (Jack Gruber-USA Today)

Altogether, he noted, the excluded delegates represent about four million Americans and what he said was “the largest per capita of veterans in this country.”

Speaking of Republican cries of “order!” which could be heard in the background, the Clerk of the House explained to Plaskett that elected delegates and the resident commissioner-elect are not qualified to vote in the House Speaker election.

“Representatives-elect are the only persons qualified to vote in the election of a speaker, as provided in Section 36 of the Rules and Manual of the House,” the secretary said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks to reporters on the floor of Congress before lawmakers vote on a new spending bill to avert a government shutdown. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)

This response prompted an impassioned response from Plaskett. “This body, and this nation, has a problem of territories and colonies,” he said, prompting a standing ovation from some Democrats.

The Republicans, meanwhile, began to boo.

“What was supposed to be temporary has effectively become permanent,” he said. “We have to do something about this problem.”

His microphone appeared to have been cut shortly after.

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Plaskett has served as a non-voting delegate to the US Virgin Islands since 2015, during which time the chamber has voted to elect seven separate House Speakers.