House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that any lawmaker who refuses to pass through new metal detectors installed in the U.S. Capitol may be hit with severe fines under a proposed rule change, a step she called “tragic” but “necessary” after several Republicans refused to do so.
Pelosi said she would introduce a rule change on Jan. 21 that the House will then vote on. The announcement comes after HuffPost’s Matt Fuller reported that at least 10 Republicans refused to comply with the safety measure. The magnetometers were installed just outside the House chamber after last week’s violent insurrection at the Capitol, which that left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer.