Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell Calls Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Views ‘Cancer for the Republican Party’

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., walks on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 1
AP Photo/Susan Walsh
Ashley Oliver

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on Monday described Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-GA) views as “cancer for the Republican Party” and condemned the freshman congresswoman for embracing “loony lies and conspiracy theories.”

The Republican Senate leader referenced past comments Greene has made related to 9/11, school shootings, and the Clintons, without explicitly using Greene’s name, in the brief statement first obtained by the Hill.

“Somebody who’s suggested that perhaps no airplane hit the Pentagon on 9/11, that horrifying school shootings were pre-staged, and that the Clintons crashed JFK Jr.’s airplane is not living in reality,” McConnell said in the statement. “This has nothing to do with the challenges facing American families or the robust debates on substance that can strengthen our party.”

Greene has come under fire for past inflammatory and conspiratorial remarks that emerged in videos and social media posts amid her congressional bid, including a 2018 video in which Greene questioned whether a plane hit the Pentagon on 9/11 and suggested John F. Kennedy Jr.’s death in a 1999 plane crash was “another one of those Clinton murders.” Greene defended herself in August on the topic of 9/11, saying, “Some people claimed a missile hit the Pentagon. I now know that is not correct,” and has broadly described the attacks against her as a smear campaign.

The outspoken Georgia Republican responded to McConnell’s rebuke Monday evening online, stating, “The real cancer for the Republican Party is weak Republicans who only know how to lose gracefully. This is why we are losing our country”:

The public exchange comes just as House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) faces mounting pressure from Democrats to address Greene’s past comments head-on, as reported by Politico. McCarthy’s office told the outlet he plans to have a meeting with Greene this week.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD), the No. 2 House Democrat, said in a statement earlier on Monday that Greene “must be held accountable for her reprehensible statements, and I am discussing with Members the best course of action to do so.” Some Democrats have called for her removal from the Education and Labor Committee and Budget Committee, both of which she is a member, while others have introduced resolutions to censure or expel her.

Greene posted a barrage of retorts to social media Monday as reports emerged about Hoyer’s comments and her upcoming conversation with McCarthy. Greene said “Bush, Biden, Kerry, Hillary & Steny conspired” to perpetuate justification for the Iraq War. “House of Hypocrites?” she wrote:

Greene also warned that removing her from committees would set a precedent “used extensively against members on their side once we regain the majority after the 2022 elections”:

Calls for McCarthy’s management of Greene are happening as the minority leader is also preparing for the House Republican Conference to assemble Wednesday, where contentious discussion is anticipated over the leadership role of Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), the third-ranking Republican who broke with the party to support impeaching former President Donald Trump last month.

McCarthy supports Cheney keeping her leadership position, while more than 100 of their colleagues have said they would be willing to vote to remove her.

Write to Ashley Oliver at aoliver@breitbart.com.

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