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Top House Republican won’t punish QAnon backer, triggering vote
WASHINGTON, Feb 4, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – The top US House Republican on
Wednesday refused to punish QAnon-backing congresswoman Marjorie Taylor
Greene, snubbing a growing chorus of calls to remove the controversial
lawmaker from two committees over her incendiary rhetoric.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and his Democratic counterpart Steny
Hoyer deadlocked over how to proceed with Greene, amid a raging debate about
her inflammatory words and support of offensive social media posts.
McCarthy broke his silence after meeting with Greene Tuesday and Wednesday.
While he “unequivocally” condemned her remarks, he said Democratic efforts
to boot her from the panels was a “partisan power grab regarding the
committee assignments of the other party.”
Hoyer said the impasse left him with no choice but to bring the issue of
disciplining Greene to the a House vote on Thursday.
“It is clear there is no alternative to holding a floor vote on the
resolution to remove Rep. Greene from her committee assignments,” Hoyer said
in a statement.
McCarthy shot back, warning that the vote served to “distract” Congress
from addressing pressing issues like coronavirus relief and vaccine
distribution.
But Greene’s case has consumed Capitol Hill, enflaming Republican divisions
as the party grapples over whether to move on from the bellicose politics of
former president Donald Trump, or to embrace them.
The 46-year-old conservative from the southern state of Georgia aligns with
Trump, and said last weekend that the two spoke by telephone.
Before running for Congress, Greene “liked” Facebook posts that advocated
the execution of Democrats including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and she once
posted a video of herself harassing a teen school shooting survivor.
In 2018 she asserted that California wildfires were ignited by a space
laser controlled by a Jewish family, and she has supported QAnon conspiracy
theories that a “deep state” cabal of satanic pedophiles was operating to
bring down Trump.
Senate Republicans have turned on her, including Minority Leader Mitch
McConnell, who branded her rhetoric a “cancer.”
McCarthy offered his own criticism, saying “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.”
But while he acknowledged Greene has “caused deep wounds to many,” he would
not oust her from both committees.
Instead, McCarthy reportedly offered to remove her from the Education and
Labor Committee if she could stay on the Budget Committee. Hoyer refused the
deal.
Republican members have little appetite to punish one of their own for
things she may have done or said before entering Congress.
But Democrats insisted on taking action.
“Reducing the future harm and disgrace she could cause” by sitting on
committees is “a necessary and proper restraint of her influence,” said
congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Greene remains remorseless, doubling down on Trump’s baseless claims that
the election was stolen.
She tweeted Wednesday that she owes “no apologies” for her actions and will
“never” back down.
BSS/AFP/FI/ 0858 hrs