Rep. Tim Burchett plans to block NYC socialist Darializa Avila Chevalier from Congress over flag napkin comment

Representative Tim Burchett plans to introduce a parliamentary motion to block Democratic nominee Darializa Avila Chevalier from being seated in Congress if she wins the November 3, 2026 election. Burchett cites Chevalier's deleted 2019 tweet about using the American flag as a napkin, which he calls an affront to his family's military service. While Burchett plans to seek a simple majority vote in January 2027, political experts and legal precedents, such as a 1969 Supreme Court ruling, suggest the effort faces a steep uphill battle.

Burchett's plan to block Chevalier

• ▪Representative Tim Burchett plans to block Democratic nominee Darializa Avila Chevalier from taking her House of Representatives seat if she wins the November 3, 2026 election, using a simple majority vote when Congress convenes in January 2027.
• ▪Representative Tim Burchett stated he would proceed with the motion to block Darializa Avila Chevalier regardless of whether Republicans retain control of the House of Representatives or become the minority party.

Chevalier's controversial flag comment

• ▪Darializa Avila Chevalier wrote in a deleted 2019 Twitter post, "I forgot to get napkins so I just wiped my hand on the American flag behind me," a comment she later stated she regretted.
• ▪Representative Tim Burchett characterized Darializa Avila Chevalier's 2019 flag comment as a disavowal of the oath to uphold the Constitution and an affront to his family's military service.

Burchett's family military service

• ▪Representative Tim Burchett's father was a World War II Marine, and his father's brother served on a United States Navy destroyer.
• ▪Representative Tim Burchett keeps the 48-star American flag that covered the casket of his maternal uncle, Thomas R. Hicks, who died fighting German forces in Normandy during World War II, in his Knoxville congressional office.

Chevalier's other controversial activities

• ▪Darializa Avila Chevalier participated in the 2024 Columbia University campus takeover and was affiliated with an anti-Israel group that advocated for the total eradication of Western civilization.
• ▪Darializa Avila Chevalier attended an anti-Israel rally the day after the horrific Hamas Oct. 7 attack in Israel, called the United States a "f—ing disgrace" in 2020, and labeled President Joe Biden a "war criminal."

Darializa Avila Chevalier's campaign

• ▪Darializa Avila Chevalier's campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
• ▪Darializa Avila Chevalier won the Democratic primary for New York's 13th Congressional District against Representative Adriano Espaillat and will face Republican Jomo M. Williams in the general election.

Precedents and feasibility of blocking members

• ▪Dr. Jeffery Jenkins of the USC Price School of Public Policy stated that while there have been over 600 contested elections in U.S. history, they have not been truly meaningful since the turn of the 20th century.
• ▪The United States Supreme Court ruled in 1969 that the House of Representatives exceeded its authority when it excluded Representative Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in 1967 after he met constitutional qualifications.
• ▪Republican operative John Feehery stated that Representative Tim Burchett's effort faces an uphill battle because the House would be unable to seat anyone if members were blocked over strongly disagreed-with statements.

Debatable claims

• ▪Blocking elected members over offensive speech does more harm than good to the legislative process
• ▪The House of Representatives has the constitutional authority to exclude members over offensive speech
• ▪The House of Representatives should block Darializa Avila Chevalier from taking her seat