GOP lawmaker: Norquist tax pledge doesn't apply after being redistricted

Rep. Chris Gibson (R-N.Y.) argued Thursday that the Grover Norquist-backed anti-tax pledge he signed in 2010 no longer applies after redistricting changed the number of the district he represented.

“The Congressman signed the pledge as a candidate in 2010 for the 20th Congressional District,” his spokeswoman told YNN. “Regarding the pledge moving forward, Congressman Gibson doesn’t plan to re-sign it for the 19th Congressional District, which he now represents (the pledge is to your constituents of a numbered district).”

As part of the once-a-decade redistricting process, Gibson saw his district number change from 19 to 20 before this year's election. On the pledge, developed by the Norquist-led Americans for Tax Reform, lawmakers fill in the district and state they represent. But, the pledge also contains language promising "to the American people" that the lawmaker would oppose any efforts to increase income tax rates.

Gibson is the latest in a string of Republicans to argue that the anti-tax pledge no longer applies, as members of the GOP seek to strike a debt deal with Democrats to avoid the looming so-called "fiscal cliff." Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) has argued that the pledge only applies for the term of Congress immediately following when it was signed.

“A pledge you signed 20 years ago, 18 years ago, is for that Congress," King told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday. "For instance, if I were in Congress in 1941, I would have supported a declaration of war against Japan. I’m not going to attack Japan today.”

Norquist has rejected the logic of legislators defecting from the pledge, saying lawmakers were fully aware the language remained binding.

"Peter King knows full well that the pledge he signed and others have, it's for while you're in Congress, it's not for a two-year period," Norquist told CNN. "It's explained to everyone when they sign, it's in writing that it's a commitment while you're in the House or while you're in the Senate. If you run for a different office, you sign it again."

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