I ran for Congress to defend democracy. Like so many of my freshman colleagues, I was horrified by the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and former President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn a free and fair election. Dozens of my Republican colleagues voted against certifying President Joe Biden’s victory. To this day they still spread the “big lie” about the outcome.
One of those colleagues is Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. She and the other extremists in the GOP cannot be trusted to protect and uphold the Constitution. They advance lies, misinformation and disinformation. There is seemingly no limit to the extent they will go to to spread hate and to encourage Americans to detest one another. Rep. Greene’s actions and statements in particular — her record of antisemitic, anti-LGBTQ, xenophobic and racist rhetoric and conspiracy theories — should be roundly condemned by her party. It has avoided doing so, and our democracy suffers as a result. That’s why I have introduced a resolution to censure Rep. Greene for her vile and hateful behavior.
Rep. Greene’s Islamophobia is not new.
The need for Rep. Greene’s censure was further demonstrated last week by her resolution to censure Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich. Rep. Tlaib is a powerful voice for her community, a valued legislator and a friend to me and so many. This resolution is an Islamophobic attack on the only Palestinian American member of Congress. It is riddled with lies about my friend and colleague. (For example, she claims Rep. Tlaib “led an insurrection” at the Capitol, referring to a peaceful protest for which Rep. Tlaib was not even in the building.) Rep. Greene’s attack is rooted in bigotry, and it adds to the fear-mongering rhetoric that encourages violence against the Muslim community in our country.
Rep. Greene’s Islamophobia is not new. In 2019, she appeared in a video claiming that Muslim members of Congress were not “really official” because they did not take the oath of office on the Bible. She has repeatedly referred to fellow members of Congress as the “Jihad Squad” and suggested that Muslim Americans do not belong in the government.
Rep. Greene’s accusation of antisemitism against Rep. Tlaib is especially cynical, given her own record. Before entering Congress, she speculated that a wealthy Jewish family (the Rothschilds) may have started wildfires with a laser from space. In 2021, she compared Covid-19 safety measures to the Holocaust, drawing a rebuke from then-House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy. The following year, she appeared at an event organized by white nationalist Nick Fuentes. The Republican Jewish Coalition said it was “appalling and outrageous that a Member of Congress would share a platform with an individual who has actively spread antisemitic bile.”
The truth is Rep. Greene is ready to weaponize hate against any American who does not look and act like her. At a Turning Point USA conference in 2021, she referred to Asian Americans as “yellow people,” a slur that has been historically used to malign the Asian American community. And Rep. Greene’s embrace of hate is sadly nothing new for Republicans. Ever since Trump first ran for office, his open and proud bigotry has stoked rising hatreds in the U.S. Trump turned his prejudiced campaign rhetoric into policy almost immediately upon entering office, including implementing a Muslim travel ban that was quickly ruled unconstitutional. Even when the courts rightly blocked his policies, Trump’s rhetoric gave explicit permission to people like Rep. Greene to use their megaphones to spew hate. For years, Republicans have come after women of color in Congress, threatening Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with violence over social media, removing Rep. Ilhan Omar from her seat on the Foreign Affairs Committee and routinely using hateful remarks in committee, on the floor and in the media. I know there are people of conscience in Congress who have remained silent about her vile behavior. Only accountability from her colleagues can break this terrible cycle. Two years ago, only 11 Republicans voted to strip Rep. Greene of her committee assignments. One hundred and ninety-nine shielded her, and as a result her behavior was unchanged. Rep. Greene needs to finally face consequences for years of false statements, fear-mongering and bigoted remarks about her fellow Americans. Her resolution is a vehicle for fanning the flames of hate at a time when Muslim Americans and Jewish Americans both already face increased threats and violence. I know there are people of conscience in Congress who have remained silent about Rep. Greene’s vile behavior. The time is now for them to finally reject her brand of politics. She has had a corrosive effect on our Congress. She has used her platform to sow more bigotry. The entire country has suffered because of it. If they do not vote to censure Rep. Greene, they are voting for more of this behavior in Congress and in our nation. There has to be a bottom. That is why I am moving to censure Rep. Greene. We have a tool to demand accountability. We must use it. Democracy depends on it.
Rep. Becca Balint
Rep. Becca Balint represents Vermont's at-large district in the U.S. House. 
