House to vote on stripping Marjorie Taylor Greene of committee assignments
Greene shouts at journalists as she goes through security outside the House chamber. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
The House will vote on Thursday on a resolution to strip Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) of her committee assignments over her promotion of baseless conspiracy theories and violent rhetoric about Democrats.
Why it matters: House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy had hoped to find an alternative with Greene or Democratic leadership to avoid the drastic step, but a statement from House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) on Wednesday made clear they were unable to reach an agreement.
What they're saying: "I spoke to Leader McCarthy this morning, and it is clear there is no alternative to holding a Floor vote on the resolution to remove Rep. Greene from her committee assignments. The Rules Committee will meet this afternoon, and the House will vote on the resolution tomorrow," Hoyer tweeted.
The big picture: Axios reported last week that prior to her election, House Republican leaders discussed — but then largely set aside — fears that Greene would end up a flaming trainwreck for their party, following revelations of racist remarks and past support for the QAnon conspiracy theory.
- McCarthy had set a threshold by stripping former Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) of his committee assignments after he made comments questioning why terms like white nationalism and white supremacy were offensive.
- Greene's past comments, which range from accusing Democrats of treason to suggesting that the Parkland school shooting was staged, have put McCarthy in a difficult bind.
- Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday called Greene's "loony lies" a "cancer" for the Republican Party.
Between the lines: Republicans are frustrated with Democratic leadership for forcing a vote on stripping a minority member from committees, given the GOP dealt internally with King and indicted former Rep. Duncan Hunter in similar scenarios.
- Republicans also think it sets a bad precedent to take this kind of action for remarks and actions made prior to a member being in office.
- Greene, meanwhile, has refused to apologize for her caustic remarks, doubling down by attacking Democrats and the media and fundraising off of the controversy.