House Democrats demand McCarthy do something about Marjorie Taylor Greene
‘Everyone has a right to a workplace free from harassment and abuse,’ House Democrats told Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
Thirty-seven House Democrats have signed a letter addressed to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) demanding that GOP leadership “take immediate action to address” the behavior of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
“We are extremely concerned that her conduct is creating an unsafe work environment for members, and that her actions could lead to violence against members of Congress. Every day that goes by without action from your leadership is a tacit endorsement of the Congresswoman’s offenses, and invitation for her to continue — and escalate further,” the lawmakers, led by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), wrote in the letter dated July 1.
Even before her election to the House in 2020, Greene was known for her support for the QAnon conspiracy theory and for racist, antisemitic, and Islamophobic statements.
Amid myriad antisemitic and Islamophobic comments, she said that Muslims do “not belong in our government.”
In January, a CNN investigation found Greene “liked” social media posts that called for executing Democratic politicians in 2018 and 2019.
Her threats and erratic behavior have continued since she was sworn in.
She called her Democratic colleagues “enemies” a few days after the riot at the U.S. Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump in January and threatened to hold them “accountable” for impeaching him.
Greene has aggressively accosted her Democratic colleagues in Congress.
In January, Rep. Cori Bush (D-MI) tweeted that after Bush asked her to put on a mask, “A maskless Marjorie Taylor Greene & her staff berated me in a hallway. She targeted me & others on social media. I’m moving my office away from hers for my team’s safety.”
After Rep. Marie Newman (D-IL), whose daughter is transgender, put a trans pride flag outside her office across from Greene’s in February, Greene responded by putting up a transphobic sign outside.
In May, Greene followed Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) outside the House chamber, shouting, “Hey Alexandria!” and accusing her of supporting terrorists.
Last month, Greene joined Trump at a rally in Ohio and railed against Ocasio-Cortez again, telling the crowd that she should be locked up and that “she’s not an American.”
This isn’t the first time Democrats in the House have taken action against Greene over concerns for their safety.
In February, joined by 11 Republicans, they voted to strip Greene of her committee assignments for her conduct and racist comments.
Greene claimed in her defense that her past comments “do not represent me.”
A month later, Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA) introduced a resolution to expel Greene from Congress.
“I believe some of my Republican colleagues, and one in particular, wish harm upon this legislative body,” Gomez said. “And I’m not saying this for shock value, it’s the conclusion I drew after a member of Congress advocated violence against our peers, the speaker, and our government.”
In response to the letter to McCarthy, Greene tweeted, “For the last 6 years, Democrats have called Republicans: Nazis, Fascists, White Supremacists, & Enemies of the State. It’s absurd Democrats accuse me of creating an environment of harassment for speaking at a Trump rally & defining them as who they are: Communists.”
While McCarthy did belatedly condemn comments Greene made in May comparing mask rules to the Holocaust, he has not taken any steps to punish her.
The letter to McCarthy from the House Democrats included a quote from his own statement on Greene in February, when he said:
Past comments from and endorsed by Marjorie Taylor Greene on school shootings, political violence, and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories do not represent the values or beliefs of the House Republican Conference. I condemn those comments unequivocally. I condemned them in the past. I continue to condemn them today. This House condemned QAnon last Congress and continues to do so today.
I made this clear to Marjorie when we met. I also made clear that as a member of Congress we have a responsibility to hold ourselves to a higher standard than how she presented herself as a private citizen. Her past comments now have much greater meaning. Marjorie recognized this in our conversation. I hold her to her word, as well as her actions going forward.
“We firmly agree with you that we, as members of Congress, have a responsibility to conduct ourselves to a higher standard,” the Democrats said. “Everyone has a right to a workplace free from harassment and abuse, including members of Congress. We urge you in the strongest terms to take immediate action to address Rep. Greene’s behavior.”
Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.
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