Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene fiercely defended former President Trump during a press conference on Friday, arguing that the Republican Party “belongs to him.”
The comments from Greene – whom Congress voted to remove from her committee assignments on Thursday for past inflammatory remarks – come as the party finds itself mired in conflict over the direction it should take in the post-Trump era.
Greene on Friday argued Trump remains popular with Republican voters.
“He was a president that wanted every single person to achieve and that’s why we supported him, that’s why I’ve always supported him,” she told reporters, adding that “the party is his and doesn’t belong to anybody else.”
A recent Morning Consult poll shows 50 percent of Republican voters feel Trump should play a “major role” in the party, with 81 percent holding a favorable opinion of him.
Greene has come under fire for her remarks made before she was elected to Congress expressing support for executing Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and perpetuating conspiracy theories that the 9/11 terrorist attacks were a hoax. She also alleged the Parkland and Sandy Hook school shootings were false flags, praised the QAnon conspiracy theory and stated that there were lasers in space controlled by a Jewish family. She later walked back a number of her comments and apologized for some of her remarks.
Yet Greene – who has repeatedly pushed unsubstantiated claims that the election was stolen – asserted that she does not believe she nor Trump bear any responsibility for the insurrection at the Capitol that led to five deaths, including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick.
“This impeachment trial that will happen next week is a circus. It is a circus that allows the media companies to get lots of clicks, lots of views and sell ad dollars. You know what? That’s pretty disgusting too,” she continued.
“Everyone here knows that he did not cause this attack on the Capitol, nor did I, nor did any Republican, but the responsibility falls squarely on those that invaded the Capitol, the ones that planned it ahead of time, those are the people that should be held accountable.”
