The developments with the House Freedom Caucus seemed rather straightforward last week. A member of the right-wing faction confirmed to reporters that the caucus had voted to kick Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene out of the group. A variety of reports, including one from NBC News, alerted the public to the fact that the radical Georgia Republican was no longer part of the radical contingent.
But then things got a little weird.
Axios reported on Friday afternoon that Freedom Caucus members had tried to contact Greene, to let her know about her ouster, but she’d avoided them.
On Tuesday, as lawmakers returned to Capitol Hill, Republicans in the Freedom Caucus refused to acknowledge what happened with Greene. Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland, for example, told reporters last week that the group had taken a vote to remove the Georgia congresswoman. On Tuesday, however, he told NBC News, “It’s none of your business.” Greene told CNN, meanwhile, that she still hasn’t officially been informed of her status with the group.
Evidently, Greene’s role in the Freedom Caucus has become something of a secret.
But as this odd drama continues to unfold, one detail has come into sharp focus: In the fight between Greene and her fellow Republican radicals, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is siding with her, not them. Axios reported last night:
Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) backed up Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) following news that she’s been voted out of the conservative House Freedom Caucus. … “I think Marjorie Taylor Greene is one of the best members we have, I think she’s the one of the most conservative members and one of the strongest legislators. I support Marjorie Greene very strongly,” McCarthy told Axios on Tuesday.
Yes, this is where we find ourselves six months into the new Republican majority in the House: McCarthy is now willing to say, out loud and on the record, that Marjorie Taylor Greene is “one of the best” members of the GOP conference, and “one of the strongest legislators” in the chamber.
This roughly coincided, of course, with the radical Georgian pushing a measure to withdraw the United States from NATO.
This was part of a familiar pattern. Let’s not forget that it was just a month into Greene’s congressional career when an avalanche of damaging revelations come to the fore: In late January 2021, the public learned of Greene’s record of dismissing 9/11 and school massacres as hoaxes. And harassing at least one survivor of a school shooting. And expressing support for the QAnon delusion. And targeting religious minorities. And peddling bizarre and antisemitic claims about fire-causing space lasers.
Perhaps most importantly, in 2018 and 2019, the Georgia Republican expressed support for violence against Democratic elected officials. This included an instance in which she liked a social-media comment about removing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi from office by way of “a bullet to the head.”
The revelations were so jarring that McCarthy — the minority leader at the time — reportedly proposed removing the extremist from one of her committee assignments. For Democrats, this wasn’t nearly good enough: They voted to remove Greene from both.
The congresswoman could’ve taken the opportunity to improve her credibility and stature. Instead, a year later, Greene spoke at a white nationalist event — a move McCarthy soon after condemned as “appalling“ and “unacceptable.”
That was just last year. This year, however, the House speaker expects us to believe that Greene is “one of the best” members of the GOP conference, and “one of the strongest legislators” in the House.
To be sure, I’m mindful of the circumstances. McCarthy and the Freedom Caucus aren’t exactly on the same page, and Greene was punished in part because of her occasional willingness to partner with House GOP leaders. The speaker is likely looking for ways to reward her loyalty, especially against those members of his own conference who are not on his side.
But to see McCarthy become a cheerleader for one of the most radical members of Congress in recent memory is ridiculous.
This post updates our related earlier coverage.
