Marjorie Taylor Greene testimony: Georgia rep grilled about Jan 6 and Proud Boys plan at ballot hearing
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Your support makes all the difference.Marjorie Taylor Greene today faced an administrative judge at a hearing that could see the Georgia Republican banned from public office because of her alleged support for the 6 January insurrection at the US Capitol.
The congresswoman was questioned about the 2021 Capitol riot by lawyer Ron Fein, representing a group of voters who filed a challenge with the Georgia secretary of state’s office alleging that Ms Greene helped facilitate the attack that ultimately sought to upend Congress’ certification of Joe Biden’s presidential election victory.
They say that her behaviour violates a clause in the US Constitution’s 14th Amendment and makes her ineligible to run for reelection.
Among other things, the case against the congresswoman hinges on her repeated use of a “codeword” – specifically, repeated references to the year 1776 – which the lawyers say encouraged the rioters who descended on the Capitol.
For her part, Ms Greene is appealing a federal judge's ruling allowing a challenge to her eligibility to run for reelection to proceed and in the hour leading up to her hearing, the pro-Trump lawmaker took to Twitter to urge her fellow Republicans to “protect election integrity”.
Another video is shown in which Rep Greene is with a gun-rights activist wearing a t-shirt with 1776 on it.
“If they take away your guns you can’t stop a tyrannical government.”
Rep Greene is asked what she means by the statement: “Once you lose your freedom it has to be earned with the price of blood.”
She says she believes without guns you cannot stop a tyrannical government and claims she does not use the phrase 1776 in connection with violence.
A 5 January 2021 Newsmax interview clip is played in which she declares January 6 would be a “1776 moment”.
She is also asked about a tweet from Rep Lauren Boebert referring to January 6 as 1776.
Rep Greene is asked if 1776 is a code word for violence and if she knows about The Proud Boys.
“I’ve heard about them. I don’t know what they do. I don’t know much about Proud Boys,” she says.
The congresswoman is then asked about a Proud Boys document allegedly detailing a plot to occupy “crucial buildings” on January 6.
The plan was titled: “1776 Returns.”
Here’s our coverage of that document:
Rep Greene is asked about Ali Alexander, a key player in the Stop the Steal movement.
She distances herself from knowing him, saying: “I’ve only met him a couple of times.”
The court is shown a video of Mr Alexander calling Ms Greene his “friend”.
More video is shown where Rep Greene says: “You cannot allow it to transfer power peacefully like Joe Biden wants” because she says Donald Trump won.
A longer version of this video is also shown in which she said there would be a million people coming to Washington on January and that “We are not a people who will go quietly into the night.”
Ms Greene maintains she wanted people to act peacefully and any planning was referring to legally objecting to certification in Congress.
Returning to the phrase “we will not go quietly into the night”, counsel says it is borrowed from the movie Independence Day.
A clip of Bill Pullman’s rousing speech from the movie is played to laughter and guffaws from the courtroom.
After the clip is played, Rep Greene says: “I don’t view courtrooms and politics as Hollywood, like you do.”
She is then asked if she asked Donald Trump to enact martial law.
Rep Greene says she does not recall.
Greene forced to admit she called for Pelosi to get death penalty
Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene was left scrambling to avoid committing perjury on Friday after an attorney representing voters seeking to disqualify her from this year’s election ballot confronted her with video of past statements in which she accused House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of “treason” and suggested the California Democrat should be executed.
Andrew Feinberg reports.
Marjorie Taylor Greene forced to admit she called for Pelosi to get death penalty
‘Oh no, wait, hold on now’
Rep Greene is asked about her own experience of January 6 and recalls remaining on the floor of the House chamber when Congress went into lockdown. She says neither she nor her staff were involved in the day’s demonstrations.
She then claims she believed Black Lives Matter and antifa has stormed the Capitol.
Counsel asks if Ms Greene knows of BLM or antifa protesters among the hundreds of people arrested after the Capitol riot, she says she does not know.
After a short recess, questioning resumes, and Rep Greene is shown her own campaign Facebook page which is hosting the previously played Newsmax interview clip including her saying: “This is our 1776 moment.”
Ms Greene is asked whether she authorised the post. She had previously described the video as misleading, and yet it has been on her page since 5 January 2021.
Rep Greene answers “I do not recall” and “I don’t remember” to a series of questions about if she discussed calling for martial law with then-President Donald Trump or any members of his staff.
She is then asked if she regards the people arrested and charged in connection with the events at the Capitol on January 6 as patriots.
Ms Greene does not say no but says their arrests do not affect their patriotism, adding that some are veterans.
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