WASHINGTON — The House yesterday approved a cutoff of all ACORN funding by an overwhelming margin, as the nonprofit faced a barrage of negative publicity over a video-sting scandal.
Sixteen New York House lawmakers, including 14 Democrats, voted to cut off funds for the group, while 10 New Yorkers voted against doing so, and one — Rep. Yvette Clarke of Brooklyn — skipped the vote, even though she voted on other measures before and after.
“ACORN’s recent behavior is just plain nuts,” said Rep. Michael McMahon (D-SI), who voted to nix the funding.
“We needed to stop providing ACORN with federal money until there is an investigation into the manner in which these funds are being used.”
ACORN supporter Jerrold Nadler of Manhattan said, “Congress must not be in the business of punishing individual organizations or people without trial, and that’s what this amendment does.”
Yesterday’s vote came on a surprise procedural move by Republican leaders to combine their bill to defund ACORN with an education bill cruising toward passage. Majority Democrats normally vote against such procedural motions. But yesterday, Democrats backed the motion by more than 2 to 1.
ACORN is getting pummeled by reports that its employees counseled a hidden-camera team, James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles, posing as a pimp and hooker, on how to dodge tax, immigration and employment laws.
After the surprise gambit by Republican leadership, many Democrats reflexively voted against the motion — only to rush to the floor and switch their votes after it became apparent that their votes could be seen as a vote for ACORN.
The group provides counseling in low-income communities, and its political arm supports Democratic candidates.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi unloaded on the group yesterday, just a day after she told The Post she was clueless about a Senate-passed amendment to nix ACORN funding.
“Any group that receives any funds from the federal government needs to have tough scrutiny applied to it,” Pelosi told reporters, saying that “a few individuals” at ACORN had engaged in “totally unacceptable, and in my view, inexcusable” actions.
Pelosi wouldn’t say whether she favored keeping a Senate-passed amendment to cut ACORN funds as the legislation moves forward, but said the House Appropriations Committee would “scrutinize” ACORN. The House vote to strip funding came after her remarks.