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- Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene argued that the pro-Trump mob that stormed Capitol Hill may not have been made up of Trump supporters.
- It came days after Greene apologized for his earlier support for conspiracy theories.
- She was removed from her duties on the committee after endorsing political violence.
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Georgian Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene falsely suggested Tuesday morning that the pro-Trump mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6 was not actually made up of Trump supporters.
“If the # Jan6 organizers were Trump supporters, then why did they attack us when we opposed the constituency votes for Joe Biden?” she tweeted. “The attack disappointed our objection that we spent weeks preparing, which devastated our efforts on behalf of Trump and his constituents.”
Greene’s tweet was part of a longer thread on the Senate seat and impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump. It came just days after clarifying on House soil his long-standing support for baseless conspiracy theories about QAnon, the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and school shootings. Greene distanced himself from the pro-Trump QAnon lie and apologized for the trafficking in false claims that mass shootings were staged and that the Pentagon was not hit by a plane on September 11.
House Democrats and 11 Republicans voted to strip Greene of his committee duties on Thursday after media detailed his previous support for the execution of prominent Democrats.
“They placed homemade bombs at the RNC and the DNC the night before [the siege]”Greene tweeted Tuesday.” They did NOT target a single party. They targeted Republicans and Democrats. They were against the government ALL together. “
- Checking the facts: It is true that the rioters were targeting both Democrats and Republicans. Their attack came after Trump spent months attacking both Democrats and GOP members who he said had not done enough to defend his baseless claim that the election was “rigged” to him. and had been stolen from him.
- At a “Save America” rally in Washington, DC shortly before the siege, Trump told thousands of his supporters to “come down to Capitol Hill” and “cheer on our brave Senators, Members of Congress and our supporters. women, “adding:” We are You probably won’t cheer some of them so much because you will never take back our country with weakness. You have to be strong and you have to be strong.
- The then-president also attacked his vice-president, Mike Pence, on Twitter and in public remarks, initially calling on him to block the formalization of Biden’s victory (which the vice-president cannot do ) and later saying that Pence lacked “courage” when he told Trump he would not carry out his orders. During the riot, several Trump supporters were heard saying they wanted to execute Pence by hanging him from a tree on the Capitol.
“The attack on Capitol Hill was planned and organized, NOT yet instigated by President Trump, and NO Republican members were involved,” Greene continued in his Twitter feed. “We were all victims that day. And once again, Trump is the victim of the endless hate-fueled witch hunt.”
- Checking the facts: Lawyers representing several indicted in connection with the Capitol Riot said their clients were acting explicitly on Trump’s orders. One of the defendants, Jacob Chansley, also known as QAnon Shaman, has offered to testify at Trump’s impeachment trial.
Called for comment, Nick Dyer, a spokesperson for Greene responded, “You are fake news. She explicitly told the organizers.”
- Checking the facts: One of the main rallies on January 6, which preceded the riot on Capitol Hill, was organized by pro-Trump Ali Alexander, an organizer of the “Stop the Steal” movement. Alexander tweeted on December 30: “Anyone can guess what me and 500,000 others will do to this building … 1776 is * always * an option.” The day before the siege, Alexander conducted chants of “Victory or Death” at Freedom Plaza in Washington. He denied having incited the riot.
- Alexander said he coordinated with Republican Representatives Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar of Arizona, and Mo Brooks of Alabama to organize “maximum pressure on Congress as they vote” on certification election on January 6.
- Major Republican groups including the Republican Attorneys General Association, Turning Point Action and Tea Party Patriots, as well as Women for America First, participated in and helped organize similar pro-Trump marches and rallies on January 5-6.
Dyer added that Greene “didn’t make a declarative statement one way or the other,” but “just asked a question.”
The House of Representatives impeached Trump last month for inciting the insurgency linked to the siege of the Capitol. His Senate trial will begin Tuesday afternoon with a debate on the constitutionality of holding a trial in the first place, given that Trump is now removed from office.
A two-thirds majority is required for the Senate to convict and remove an official, and possibly prevent him from re-occupying public office. Democrats have a simple majority in the upper house – 50 seats plus Vice President Kamala Harris’ deciding vote – meaning at least 17 Republicans would have to break ranks to secure a conviction for Trump. This is highly unlikely given that 45 Senate Republicans voted last month to declare the trial unconstitutional before it even began.
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