Karin Eriksson: Taylor Greene Controversy Is Basically About Trump’s Legacy



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Why did the Democrats want to get rid of Marjorie Taylor Greene?

Because she is the most extreme member of Congress, a politician who has managed to enter the corridors of power despite the fact that she represents currents that try to undermine confidence in democracy in the United States.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, who took office in January, not only openly supports former President Donald Trump and his theories about how voter fraud ruined the 2020 election. She is also strongly associated with the conspiracy theories of the QAnon movement and the idea of Share Democrats are part of a Satanist network. On Facebook, he has liked a post that the Democratic leader in the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, should be “shot in the head.” She has speculated that some of the school shootings in the United States may have been rigged. He has spread conspiracies about the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. To give a few examples.

Now Democrats have chosen to fight for their seats on the Budget Committee and the Education Committee in the House of Representatives. It was considered particularly serious that a politician who spreads lies about school shootings should be involved in educational policy.

So, was it a resounding majority that tried to remove her from committee seats?

No, you can’t say that. The number of votes in the House of Representatives ranged from 230 to 199 to remove Marjorie Taylor Greene from committee seats. All Democrats voted for the poll and a total of eleven Republicans. Three members of Congress abstained. The pattern is recognizable: When the House of Representatives voted in the Supreme Court for Donald Trump a few weeks ago, ten Republicans chose to back the demand to hold the former president accountable for the assault on the Capitol.

Why did almost all Republicans vote against removing Taylor Greene from committees?

As with the Supreme Court, the vast majority of Republicans are trying to point to principles: They believe it is wrong to bring Trump to justice because he has left the presidency, and they believe it is wrong to hold Taylor Greene accountable for the remarks. that she did. has done. before taking a seat in Congress. But basically, the Taylor Greene controversy is about Trump’s legacy and the extremism of Trumpism. Marjorie Taylor Greene herself has said that she had contact with the former president last week and will soon visit him in Mar-A-Lago.

The Republican leadership in the House of Representatives faces the choice of tolerating extremism or risking the ire of Trump supporters. One might think that the moral choice is obvious, but the party establishment is trying to find compromises that can satisfy all phalanxes at the same time. Minority leader Kevin McCarthy has chosen to distance himself from Taylor Greene’s remarks, while trying to give assurances that she will be more careful in the future.

How does the outcome of the vote affect the relationship between Democrats and Republicans?

The mood was already dire, and Thursday’s vote is likely only adding to the frustration. Within Democrats, there is growing anger that Republicans cannot or will not clean up the party. Republicans respond by highlighting several controversial statements from Democratic members. Florida Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart, who supported Marjorie Taylor Greene’s petition, has made it clear that he wants to remove several political opponents from the committee.

How has Marjorie Taylor Greene reacted?

There have been many mixed signals. He has condemned the vote, but at the same time has stated that it is better to avoid working on committees now that Democrats still have a majority in Congress. “I would waste my time,” he explained at a press conference on Friday morning. He apologized for some of his previous comments, without specifying what he really wanted back. She accused the Democrats of dividing the country, even though she he himself had tweeted that political opponents were “idiots” early in the morning.

Can you become a martyr to Trump supporters?

It is decided by the man who still plays such a central role in American politics, even though he has formally left the White House. If Donald Trump shows his support for Marjorie Taylor Greene in public, and if she really has the opportunity to pay an official visit to Mar-A-Lago, then she will be a galleon figure for the broader Trumpism. For right-wing extremists, she will always be a hero.



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