Congress voted to strip conspiracy theorist, QAnon supporter and GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of her committee duties Thursday, and the debate before her removal prompted plenty of reactions from her critics, including fellow politicians.
Before the vote to oust her from her duties on the Budget, Education, and Labor Committees, Greene gave a speech to the House of Representatives. It was framed as an apology, but Greene never actually apologized for anything and actually doubled down on her belief that the 2020 election was “stolen” from former president Trump.
CNN anchor Jake Tapper said the GOP is “whitewashing” Greene’s dangerous remarks, despite a mountain of social media and video evidence of her baseless rants and support for QAnon.
“I thought it was the most disingenuous speech I’ve heard,” Tapper said on CNN. “I wish I could say ever, but since a few weeks ago when the Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy, acted outraged that anybody would be pushing the election lie that he himself had pushed for two months.”
“These anti-Semitic theories, QAnon, Pizzagate, all this nonsense and the big lie about the election — this has cost lives. That’s why people are discussing this and debating this — this cost lives. It enraged add mob that attacked Capitol Hill. And this is more of a lie, this is part of the whitewashing of all of that,” Tapper added.
Republican minority leader Kevin McCarthy did nothing to reprimand Greene for her behavior during a closed-door session Wednesday, which riled up lawmakers on the other side of the aisle.
“Republicans will do anything to distract from the fact that they have not only allowed but elevated members of their own caucus who encourage violence,” Minn. Democratic congresswoman Ilhan Omar said Thursday. “It’s time to stop whitewashing the actions of the violent conspiracy theorists, who pose a direct and immediate threat to their fellow Members of Congress and our most fundamental democratic processes.”
Greene and Omar have clashed before — in 2019 when Omar and Michigan Democratic congresswoman Rashida Talaib were sworn in, Greene appeared on Capitol Hill to claim their membership wasn’t legal because they swore in using Quarans, not Bibles. It’s not mandatory to use a Bible to swear into Congress; members can use any religious text of their choosing. Greene has made Islamaphobic comments before, saying that Muslims “don’t belong” in America.
Conspiracy theories and outright falsehoods that Greene has promoted include Pizzagate, the idea that California wildfires were started by a “Jewish space laser,” and that school shootings like the massacres in Parkland and Newtown aren’t real, but staged by “crisis actors” as an attempt to weaken gun rights. Greene has also called for the execution of fellow Democratic lawmakers like Nancy Pelosi and expressed support for the MAGA mob that rioted at the Capitol after being incited to “take back the government” by Trump and QAnon.
Although Taylor Greene did admit that the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and the Parkland school shooting did happen during her quasi-apology speech Thursday — “9/11 absolutely happened,” she said. “And it is a tragedy for anyone to say that it didn’t happen. I do not believe that it is fake.”
Greene is using the newfound attention this week to raise funds from her base — she’s gained roughly $250,000 this week.
California congressman Ted Lieu tweeted a video clip of Greene’s apology, where she said her comments were “words of the past,” noting, “Literally three days ago Marjorie Taylor Greene called people pedophiles if they were anti-Trump. The belief that a secret cabal of pedophiles controls government is one of the beliefs of Q.”
Read more reactions to the debate on Greene’s role in Congress below:
Literally three days ago Marjorie Taylor Greene called people pedophiles if they were anti-Trump. The belief that a secret cabal of pedophiles controls government is one of the beliefs of Q. https://t.co/gkoelVC4U9 https://t.co/EKVVDcCpB0
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) February 4, 2021
Marjorie Taylor Greene won't be able to stay quiet about her hate and hide her nuttiness. That is who she is. This act right now won't last. Not even a month.
— Wajahat Ali (@WajahatAli) February 4, 2021
https://twitter.com/helaineolen/status/1357413756226084865?s=20
In a clear lie, Marjorie Taylor Greene said the media is just as responsible as QAnon. That is not true.
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) February 4, 2021
In May 2018, Marjorie Taylor Greene posted a story about disgraced Broward County sheriff’s deputy Scot Peterson receiving a retirement pension, agreeing with commenters that the shooting in Parkland was a “false flag.” https://t.co/ZKPgQfHytb pic.twitter.com/oaOlDvuizB
— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) February 4, 2021
"When we rise up, we can end all of this. We can end it. We can do it peacefully, we can. I hope it doesn't, we don't have to do it the other way. I hope not. But we should feel like we will, if we have to." Marjorie Taylor Greene. Expel.
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) February 4, 2021
GOP has already become party of Marjorie Taylor Greene at state level, introducing wave of new voter suppression laws based on unhinged conspiracy theories
This is huge scandal that should be getting as much attention as Trump’s plot to overturn election https://t.co/9VsFsWbF1f
— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) February 4, 2021
I stand with Marjorie Taylor Greene on her stance that 9/11 did in fact happen.
— Cody Johnston (@drmistercody) February 4, 2021
"Those are things I said when I was in office. They don't count now that I'm a private citizen."
— Donald J. Trump
"Those are things I said when I was a private citizen. They don't count now that I'm in office."
— Marjorie Taylor Greene
— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@BettyBowers) February 4, 2021
Marjorie Taylor Greene? Mislead? Lie?
That would never happen. https://t.co/n5VW4pgdFG
— Matt Fuller (@MEPFuller) February 4, 2021
Republican argument in a nutshell:
Sure, Marjorie Taylor Greene called for Nancy Pelosi to be executed, harassed a school shooting survivor, claimed no airplane hit the Pentagon on 9/11, and insisted Jewish lasers start wildfires, but, by comparison, Ilhan Omar is a brown woman.
— Alex Cole (@acnewsitics) February 4, 2021
Keep this in mind-Kevin McCarthy wants to be Speaker. Marjorie Taylor Greene has become Trump’s pet and she raised $325,000 in two days as a result of her “looney lies” Kevin has been coopted
— Jackie Speier (@RepSpeier) February 4, 2021
On the floor of the House of Representatives, Marjorie Taylor Greene complains that it's unfair and cancel culture that other people can retweet porn but she can't be transphobic. pic.twitter.com/4MT1bWy1mW
— jordan (@JordanUhl) February 4, 2021