Republican strategist Evan Siegfried told CNBC that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. and “their hideous views pose a serious problem for the GOP” as the House of Representatives prepares to vote on Thursday on a resolution to remove Greene’s committee duties.
“You don’t just force that [Republican] To say party whether they agree with them or not, but they are a gift to Biden and the Democrats because they don’t allow Republicans to effectively communicate their message against President Biden’s agenda, “said Siegfried, the author of “GOP GPS: How to Find the Millennials and Urban Voters the Republican Party needs to survive. “
The move to remove Greene from the committee’s duties comes amid widespread criticism of a number of extreme remarks she made prior to winning her congressional seat, including pointing out that school shootings like the one at Sandy Hook took place in 2012 and a parkland survivor were mocked.
Minority chairman Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., Released a statement Wednesday condemning Greene’s earlier comments but said the decision to remove them from committees was a distraction from Congress.
“The Democrats are resolving to raise the temperature by taking the unprecedented step to advance their partisan takeover of the other party’s committee assignments,” McCarthy said.
Siegfried told The News with Shepard Smith that McCarthy and the Republicans missed an opportunity because they did nothing.
“Leader McCarthy and the House GOP have given up their responsibilities by saying that they will now let the whole House decide their fate,” said Siegfried. “It shouldn’t be difficult to take action against someone with morally disgusting views.”
On Wednesday, the Democrats in the House Rules Committee gave the go-ahead for the vote, saying they had to act because Republicans didn’t take action.
House majority leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., Tweeted after speaking with minority leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. “”
Greene took advantage of the Democrats’ actions and began fundraising Tuesday based on allegations that she was wrongly aligned with her beliefs. She tweeted that she has since raised $ 160,000 for her efforts.
Democratic strategist Eric Koch told The News with Shepard Smith that Democrats shouldn’t worry that their opposition may benefit Greene’s grassroots.
“Marjorie Taylor Greene is a dangerous Q-anon conspiracy theorist and must be held accountable for her extremist, anti-Semitic views and the trauma she has brought on survivors of violence,” said Koch. “Democrats shouldn’t worry what their base might think of this.”
Speaking at the rules committee hearing, senior Oklahoma Republican Tom Cole said he was concerned that allowing Democrats to unilaterally take action against a legislature in another party would set a dangerous precedent.
Committee chairman Jim McGovern, D-Mass. Said it was okay to set a precedent for a member to advocate violence against his colleagues. “If that’s not why I don’t know what the hell is,” said McGovern.
Koch said, “If the Republicans would rather side with someone who thinks the parkland shooting is a joke or if Jewish space lasers set off forest fires, that’s their choice.”
The vote will force Republicans to put on record whether Greene should be reprimanded for her earlier comments.
Siegfried predicted that GOP officials “will be praised by the media and loathed by the grassroots, and as a result many will see them as part of the” establishment “and somehow personally against them.”
Siegfried added that Republican elected officials looked away from many of Trump’s “absurdities” believing the party would return to its pre-Trump era once he was out of office.
“They didn’t expect the grassroots not to want to go back there, and they also voted for pro-Trump officials who will continue to advocate what can only be described as insane and morally disgusting views.”
A parallel drama also played out in the house with Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wy. Supporters of former President Donald Trump want to remove Cheney from her No. 3 leadership position for supporting Trump’s impeachment for inciting insurrection
Siegfried said the debate among Republicans in the House about keeping Cheney signals to him that the grassroots Trump had created has not changed.
“They will be present for years to come, promoting individuals and ideas that are more like Greene than Rep. Cheney,” Siegfried said.
A source told NBC News that Cheney refused to apologize for the charges against Trump during an allegedly noisy GOP meeting in camera.
Koch said the move against Cheney showed that “the Republican Party is Trump and Marjorie Taylor Greene’s party”.
