QAnon congresswoman-turned-GOP House leadership darling Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-GA) membership with the House Freedom Caucus has been in question ever since she laid down her life/remaining dignity to back House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) in his speakership race. Since then, she’s been picking fights and at odds with members of the rebellious faction for being too tight with the establishment crowd.
While there’s been speculation for weeks that the Georgia congresswoman may soon get the boot from the fringe group, it turns out that the Freedom Caucus has actually already voted to punish Greene for forgetting where she came from.
Freedom Caucus member Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) told Politico Thursday that “a vote was taken to remove Marjorie Taylor Greene from the House Freedom Caucus for some of the things she’s done.” Harris reportedly wouldn’t say how he personally voted on the matter, but said that the ousting was “an appropriate action.” When Politico asked if the vote meant she was officially excommunicated, Harris said: “As far as I know, that is the way it is.”
While Harris also claimed to Politico that she was booted because she called Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) a “little bitch” on the House floor, members’ irritation with Greene and her cozy relationship with McCarthy and other members of Republican leadership have been seemingly growing for some time. Per Politico:
Asked if Greene breaking from the group on the debt bill or her support for McCarthy were factors, Harris said, “I think all of that mattered.”
“I think the straw that broke the camel’s back was publicly saying things about another member in terms that no one should,” he said.
While the rift between leadership and the far-right members has been on display since Republicans just barely took back control of the House last fall, the tension with Greene suggests that the interparty quarreling might be more sophisticated — or at least more multidimensional — than a far-right/leadership divide.
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