Unsurprisingly since the ballot largely followed partisan lines, the House of Representatives sanctioned, Thursday, February 4, the Republican elected representative Marjorie Taylor Greene. The Georgia state member, who had shared conspiracy theories, was ousted from her seat on the education and budget committees by 230 votes in favor and 199 against.
Only 11 Republicans joined with the majority Democrats in the lower house of Congress, who notably denounced its past support for the theses of the QAnon conspiracy movement and its statements appearing to call for the execution of Democratic leaders.
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“These were words from the past”
Before the vote, the elected 46-year-old had made amends. “I was able to believe in things that were not true (…) and I regret it “, did she say. Wearing a mask with the inscription ” Freedom of expression “, she claimed to have “Stopped believing” conspiracy theories before being a candidate.
“These were words from the past” who “Do not represent my values”, she insisted, accusing the media of being “As much guilty as QAnon of presenting truths and lies that divide us”.
But this act of contrition did not convince Democrats. “No member [de l’assemblée] should only be allowed to behave like Mme Greene and risk zero consequences ”Democrat No.2 Steny Hoyer said in the debate leading up to the vote.
” Who’s next ? “
Before the vote, Democrat Tom Malinowski warned that if the elected official obtained broad support from her camp, “Violent extremists would see this as another sign that they have a legitimate place in the national debate”.
Republicans, on the contrary, believed that she should not be sanctioned for statements made before she entered Congress in January. “Nobody supports what was said before this person became a member” chamber, Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy said.
” Who’s next ? “, asked Republican Jim Jordan, denouncing “A culture of banishment”. Liz Cheney, number 3 of the Republican Party in the chamber, for her part denounced after the vote “A dangerous precedent for this institution that the Democrats could regret when the Republicans take back the majority”.
Before being elected, Marjorie Taylor Greene claimed that the Democratic Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, was guilty of “Betrayal”, a crime according to her “Punishable by death”. She had questioned the reality of several deadly shootings, suspecting staging to toughen gun laws, and questioned the fact that a plane crashed into the Pentagon during the 11- September.
The Republican also claimed responsibility before her election to the pro-Trump QAnon movement, a far-right movement defending the idea that Donald Trump is waging a secret war against a global sect made up of satanist pedophiles. “The school shootings are very real” and “September 11 absolutely took place”, however, she assured Thursday, without offering a real apology.
Divisions within the Republican Party
His case reveals the tensions within the Republican Party between the faithful of the Republican billionaire, who retains a strong power of influence with 74 million votes collected in November and relays in Congress, and supporters of a traditional line. Each fringe is eyeing the parliamentary elections of 2022, and the presidential election of 2024.
Mouthpiece of the pro-Trump fringe, Florida parliamentarian Matt Gaetz also warned on Fox News Wednesday against a “Dangerous precedent” if Congress sanctioned Mme Greene, who won by far in November in his constituency. “This is what the left is trying to do, it says the American people don’t matter”, he said.
For several days, he has been attacking Liz Cheney. The Wyoming elected official is one of ten Republicans who voted in favor of the impeachment of Donald Trump for inciting an insurgency during the assault of some of his supporters against Congress on January 6.
“We are engaged in a battle for the soul of the Republican Party and I intend to win it”, he assured last week during a trip to Cheyenne, the capital of this state which voted in favor of Donald Trump in November.
