JEFFERSON CITY — Shortly after eight Republican lawmakers signed onto a filing for impeachment of Gov. Jay Nixon, House Democratic Leader Jake Hummel, D-St. Louis, issued a statement charging that the “crazy wing” of the House Republican Caucus had “taken over.”

The House resolution calling for impeachment of Nixon refers to his executive order to allow same-sex couples to file for a joint federal tax return.

“If House Republicans insist on embarrassing themselves with sham election-year impeachment proceedings, then, by all means, they should have at it,” Hummel said in a statement Thursday afternoon.

Republican House Speaker Tim Jones, R-Eureka, released a statement responding to the resolution and said he takes the allegations “very seriously.”

“The allegations against the governor regarding his repeated violations of the Missouri Constitution are ones I take very seriously and that certainly merit thorough discussion and investigation,” Jones said. “At the same time, the act of impeachment is something that should be utilized sparingly and only in response to an egregious abuse of the laws of our state.”

The resolution charges Nixon with an impeachable offense for allowing joint tax returns by gay couples despite a voter-approved constitutional provision prohibiting the state from recognizing gay marriages.

When he announced his decision, Nixon said it simply was in compliance with a state law that bases Missouri’s income tax filings on the federal tax filings of taxpayers.