Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz files ethics complaint against Nancy Pelosi for ripping up speech

(WSVN) - Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz has announced that he has filed an ethics complaint against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for ripping up a copy President Donald Trump’s State of Union address.

“Her conduct was beneath the dignity of the House, and a potential violation of law (18 USC 2071),” Gatez tweeted. “Nobody is above the law. She must be held accountable.”

Pelsoi ripped up her copy of the president’s remarks immediately at the conclusion of his speech, Tuesday night.

“It was a manifesto of mistruths,” Pelosi told reporters as she left the Capitol. The ripping was not planned, according to a person close to the Democratic speaker who was unauthorized to speak publicly.

Republicans dismissed her display as a tantrum. Among them was Vice President Mike Pence, who sat next to Pelosi during the speech.

“I found out just a few moments later, and I think it was a new low,” he said Wednesday on “Fox & Friends.” “I wasn’t sure if she was ripping up the speech or ripping up the Constitution.”

The White House also responded to Pelosi’s actions.

“Speaker Pelosi just ripped up: One of our last surviving Tuskegee Airmen. The survival of a child born at 21 weeks. The mourning families of Rocky Jones and Kayla Mueller. A service member’s reunion with his family. That’s her legacy,” the White House tweeted, referencing those who Trump mentioned during his address.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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