Topline
Tensions in the Capitol nearly led to two physical altercations Tuesday, but plenty of fights have actually broken out throughout Congress’ history, in some cases leaving legislators severely injured.
Key Facts
On Feb. 15, 1798, Rep. Roger Griswold of Connecticut repeatedly struck Rep. Matthew Lyon of Vermont with a cane, angered by the House of Representatives’s failure to expel Lyon for spitting tobacco juice at him, and Lyon defended himself with fire tongs, though a resolution to expel both failed.
In one of the most famous acts of congressional violence, Rep. Preston Brooks (D-S.C.) attacked Sen. Charles Sumner (R-Mass.) with a cane on May 22, 1856, bloodying and nearly killing him, because of Sumner’s anti-slavery “Crime Against Kansas” speech in which he criticized slaveholders, calling out several Democratic senators.
On Feb. 5, 1858, Rep. Lawrence M. Keitt (D-S.C.) lunged for Rep. Galusha A. Grow (R-Pa.) after the two exchanged insults after Grow stepped over to the Democratic side of the House floor, started a massive physical fight involving at least a dozen northerners and a dozen southerners.
Sen. Ben Tillman (D-S.C.) accused Sen. John McLaurin (D-S.C.) of a “willful, malicious, and deliberate lie” on Feb. 22, 1902, after McLaurin decided to stand with Republicans in supporting annexation of the Philippines, prompting McLaurin to punch Tillman in the face and causing injuries to other senators who tried to break up the fight.
Rep. Robert Dornan (R-Calif.) accused Rep. Thomas Downey (D-N.Y.) of grabbing him by the shoulder on March 4, 1985, days after Dornan gave a speech calling him a “draft-dodging wimp,” after which Downey said Dornan grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, though Dornan said he was just straightening the knot in his tie so he could look “elegant.”
Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) lunged at Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) on Jan. 6, 2023 after Gaetz voted to block Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from becoming the next House speaker in what was already a lengthy speaker election, prompting Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.) to restrain him and other representatives shouting at them to “be civil.”
News Peg
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) said he was elbowed in the back by McCarthy while he was speaking with reporters Tuesday, though McCarthy denied the allegation, telling reporters: “If I’d kidney-punched him, he’d be on the ground.” Burchett told reporters he believed McCarthy’s alleged elbowing was “100% on purpose” because Burchett had voted to oust McCarthy as speaker a month prior. Burchett reportedly ran after McCarthy, calling him a “jerk,” a “chicken” and “pathetic.” The same day, Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) challenged Sean O’Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, to a fight during a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing. Mullin first read critical social media posts O’Brien had made about him, including one where he appeared to challenge Mullin to a fight: “You know where to find me. Anyplace, Anytime cowboy,” O’Brien posted in June. Mullin told O’Brien “this is a place,” and O’Brien replied he would “love to do it right now,” before both men challenged each other to “stand your butt up.” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the chairman of the Senate committee, stepped in to break up the fight, yelling at Mullin to sit down, telling him: “You are a United States senator,” though Mullin and O’Brien continued to trade insults.
Big Number
70. That’s at least how many physical fights broke out in Congress between 1830 and 1860, a particularly violent period for the legislature as congressmen resorted to physical brawls as they debated slavery, according to Yale University historian Joanne B. Freeman. Freeman detailed these altercations in her book, “The Field of Blood: Congressional Violence in Antebellum America,” many of which were previously unknown because, according to Freeman, journalists did not regularly cover congressional debates until the late 1840s and officials would omit fights from published records of floor debates.
Crucial Quote
“This is straight out of the 1830s, 40s, and 50s,” Freeman posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, in response to a news clip of Mullin claiming the people of Oklahoma would be upset with him had he not challenged O’Brien to a fight. Freeman has previously stated congressional violence is “deliberately intended to rile up Americans,” which can lead to more violence and extremism.
Surprising Fact
Though not on the House floor, Rep. William J. Graves of Kentucky shot and killed Rep. Jonathan Cilley of Maine in 1838 in a duel in Maryland. Cilley had accused newspaper editor James Watson Webb of accepting a bribe, prompting Webb to challenge him to a duel in a letter sent through Graves. Cilley refused to accept the letter, offending Graves, who then challenged Cilley to a duel himself.
Tangent
State legislatures have also witnessed even more intense violence, including a fatal stabbing on the floor of the Arkansas General Assembly on Dec. 4, 1837. Speaker of the House and Arkansas Real Estate Bank president John Wilson stabbed Rep. Joseph J. Anthony to death after Anthony proposed an amendment to a bill suggesting that the president of the state bank administer bounties for killing wolves, which Wilson took as a personal insult. Wilson left his chair and stabbed Anthony, who also drew a knife but was unable to defend himself. In another intensely violent incident, known as the “Black Day” of the Indiana General Assembly, Democratic Gov. Isaac P. Gray intended to run for a vacant U.S. Senate seat in 1888 but first needed to fill the vacant lieutenant governor’s seat so a successor would be in place. When a Republican, Robert S. Robertson, won the lieutenant governor election, Democrats refused to accept the outcome despite a ruling from the state Supreme Court recognizing Robertson as the winner. A four-hour-long fight broke out when Robertson attempted to take his seat in the chamber, culminating in Democrats and Republicans threatening to kill each other and the state police intervening to stop the violence.
Further Reading
Fight Club Erupts on Capitol Hill (New York Times)
When Violence Broke Out in Congress (The New Republic)
‘The goal was to silence people’: historian Joanne Freeman on congressional violence (The Guardian)