House Republicans are demanding that Rep. Jamaal bowman, who admitted to pulling a fire alarm in the U.S. Capitol hours before the possibility of a government shutdown, receive the same justice the protesters received for their Jan. 6, 2021 break-in to the Capitol to obstruct the official business.

Mr. Bowman, a New York Democrat said in a Saturday night statement that he activated a Cannon House Office Building alarm because he “rushed to make a voting” and believed that activating it would open a door nearby.

He said, “I went to a door which is normally open for voting but today wouldn’t open.” He said: “I’m embarrassed to admit I accidentally activated the smoke alarm thinking that it would open the doors.”

The building was evacuated while the police investigated for any threats.

Sunday, it was unclear whether the alarm set off by Mr. Bowman specifically delayed the House vote Saturday night on a Republican budget bill in order to prevent the shutdown of the government. It was possible that it could have, and it came at a time when other Democrats were attempting to delay the vote by using parliamentary tricks.

“I regret it and apologize for any confusion that this may have caused. “I regret this and sincerely apologize for any confusion that was caused.” Mr. Bowman told reporters. “It was exactly the opposite — I tried urgently to reach a vote which I eventually did.”

Mr. Bowman also said that he met with the Sergeant-at-Arms and Capitol Police at their request and explained what happened.

He added, “I hope that no one makes more than this.”

The Republican legislators do not believe Mr. Bowman.

According to a GOP adviser, Republicans suspect that he is trying to help the Democrats delay the floor vote to prevent a vote on a GOP stop-gap measure. This was something they were unaware of.

House Democrats, the GOP aide said, wanted the Democratic-controlled Senate to pass its temporary spending bill, which included additional Ukraine funding, before the House GOP leadership could pass its spending measure in the lower chamber.

Bryan Steil (Republican Wisconsin and Chairman of the House Administration Committee) announced on X that an investigation has been opened into why the fire alarm had been pulled.

According to D.C. laws, anyone convicted of giving a false fire alarm within the city with knowledge or intent can face a fine of up six months and jail time.

The U.S. Capitol Police confirmed that it has opened an inquiry into “what happened and Why” to The Washington Times.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy stated that he thought the Ethics Committee should investigate this issue, but viewed it as a serious one.

He referenced how Jan. 6 protesters were treated after they attempted to stop the Congress’ certification of the 2020 presidential-election victory of President Biden.

“I will have a conversation with the Democratic Leader about it. But this shouldn’t go unpunished. This is embarrassing. McCarthy told reporters that you were elected as a member of Congress. “You pulled the alarm just hours before the shutdown of the government – were you trying to tell the government when it would close?”

Rep. Cory Mills of Florida, a Republican, suggested that Mr. Bowman’s phone should be confiscated, noting the fact that the FBI had seized the cell phone belonging to Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, a Republican, in the aftermath of the riots of Jan. 6.

“Perhaps, he was trying coordinate Hakeem Jeffreys or the leadership and his side and they tried to delay prep this and also people like Scott Perry get his phone wrongly,” Mr. Mills stated Sunday on “Fox and Friends.”

“We have to be able treat this the same way as everyone else. “I think it is only fair that we start looking into this further,” he said.

Other GOP members called for Mr. Bowman to be arrested, expelled or censured.

Rep. Troy Nehls from Texas posted to the social media site X, “I’m Hearing Rep. Jamaal bowman (D-NY), was CAUGHT on CAMERA pulling a fire alarm in a House Office Building for the CR vote.”

He said, “IF TRUE – he should face charges of obstructing a legal proceeding which is a FELONY.” Former Sheriff, I would gladly slap him with cuffs,” referring to a felony charge that defendants faced on Jan. 6.

In a later post, Mr. Nehls posted a picture of himself with handcuffs. He then asked Mr. Bowman, “Jamaal, are you ready?”

According to the Department of Justice, more than 300 defendants were charged with “corruptly impeding, influencing or obstructing an official proceeding or trying to do so”, in relation to the riots of Jan. 6.

Similar remarks were made by other Republican legislators.

“Rep. Rep. Beth Van Duyne, Texas Rep. posted on X that Bowman had obstructed a formal proceeding by pulling an alarm without authority. “Arrest, prosecute and imprison that miserable insurrectionist.”

Rep. Andy Biggs, Arizona’s Rep., posted a meme featuring Mr. Bowman wore the same red, white, and blue face paint and horned Viking mask as Jacob Chansley – one of the most well-known defendants from the Jan. 6 trial.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (New York Democrat) defended a fellow squad member, saying Republicans were rushing to judgment.

“I believe if you look at some of the pictures of the signs there’s something that can be said about the Government about to close down,” said Ms. Ocasio-Cortez on CNN’s State of the Union.

There’s a voting clock that is going down. She continued, “The exits in the building that were normally open have suddenly been closed.” She then condemned GOP lawmakers for wanting to punish Mr. Bowman.

She said that “Republican Representatives like Nicole Malliotakis, and others, immediately moved to file motions of censure and expelling before any conversations were finished to determine if there was a misunderstanding here,”

Malliotakis has presented a bill to remove Mr. Bowman was expelled from Congress by Ms. The House is currently divided and this provision would require two-thirds to pass.

Harriet Hageman, a Wyoming Republican representative, and Lisa McClain, a Michigan Republican congresswoman are drafting censure legislation against Mr. Bowman. The provision could be passed with a simple majority.