There’s Something About Marjorie
- QAnon-supporting Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) got a taste of the spotlight this week, and the scrutiny that comes with it. Attention has turned to her past comments calling the Parkland and Sandy Hook school shooting massacres false flags, as well as her liking of social media posts that advocated for violence against Democrats.
- Fred Guttenberg, the father of one of the 17 people killed in the Parkland school shooting, tweeted a video of Greene in 2018 heckling David Hogg, one of the Parkland students who has become an outspoken advocate for gun reform since the massacre.
- Guttenberg called Greene a “depraved person who ran for Congress on a lie.”
- Hogg also responded to Greene heckling him when he was in Washington to advocate for gun control measures: “My message to Kevin McCarthy is this, take her committee assignments away.”
- He’s not the only one raising issue with Greene’s committee posts. Education and Labor Committee Chair Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) also demanded McCarthy explain why Greene belongs on a committee whose goal is to advance education.
- Republican leaders reportedly discussed the issues Greene would post to the party last summer, but ultimately decided to do nothing about it.
- Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), a moderate who voted to impeach President Trump after the Capitol insurrection, said this week that his Republican colleagues’ embrace of fringe conspiracy theories like QAnon has “unmoored the party.”
- The White House has tried to keep questions about Greene at arm’s length as the Biden administration focuses on advancing its agenda.
GOP Is Still Trump’s Party
- Former President Trump has been remarkably, refreshingly quiet since he slinked off to Florida last week. But make no mistake: he’s still the big man in charge of the Republican Party.
- Trump appears eager to go after two Republican officials in particular: House GOP Conference Chair Liz Cheney and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. Cheney voted to impeach Trump and has faced calls for Republican leaders in Congress to remove her from her leadership position. Kemp, a staunch Trump ally, attracted Trump’s ire by not doing more to help Trump illegitimately snatch a win from the jaws of defeat in the Peach State.
- Speaking of Republican leaders, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) made a MAGA pilgrimage Thursday to Florida to stroke Trump’s ego. Remember when McCarthy said Trump bears some responsibility for the deadly insurrection at the Capitol? That was so two weeks ago, and McCarthy has since watered down those comments to say that, well, everyone in the country bears some responsibility.
- Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel told the AP this week that the GOP will remain neutral in the 2024 presidential primaries should Trump decided to run again. But we’ll believe it when we see it.
Biden’s Executive Order Blitz
- President Biden hit the ground running during his first full week in office, signing a slew of executive orders to begin to advance his policy agenda.
- On Tuesday, Biden rolled out executive action focused on restoring racial justice policies that Trump had done away with.
- On Wednesday, the Biden team detailed action to address climate change, which the administration emphasized goes hand-in-hand with strengthening the economy.
- On Thursday, Biden signed executive orders to reopen the Affordable Care Act health insurance marketplaces for people impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
- The Biden administration also announced plans to secure 200 million more COVID-19 vaccine doses, which should be available over the summer. That means the U.S. government will have acquired enough vaccine to inoculate 300 million Americans against the deadly pandemic.
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