‘FURIOUS’ Homeland Security Republicans could remove MTG from committee
Marjorie Taylor Greene could now face removal from the committee from her own party after twice lashing out at a Homeland Security Committee hearing and calling DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas a liar.
The fiery Republican congresswoman called on Democratic Representative Eric Swalwell during the hearing to again accuse him of having a sexual relationship with and being compromised by a Chinese spy — a matter unrelated to Wednesday’s hearing.
After that breakout and the one calling out Mayorkas’ character, Republican Chairman Mark Green banned Taylor Greene — often referred to as her initials MTG — from speaking further at the hearing.
MTG was removed from her committee assignments in 2021 by the then Democratic-controlled chamber for pushing conspiracy theories, some related to QAnon.
But the latest is a stunning display of how even members of MTG’s own party are getting fed up with her antics and bombastic rhetoric.
Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene may be removed from the Homeland Security Committee over repeated outbursts after her own party was silenced in a hearing Wednesday
Homeland Committee Chair Mark Green had to move to end MTG’s time after she lashed out at fellow panelist Eric Swalwell, then called witness DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas a “liar”
Mayorkas appeared before the commission on Wednesday to testify about the southern border crisis. He faced quirks from several Republicans
Vegetable, a source close to him told CNNis furious at the congressman’s behavior at Wednesday’s hearing.
According to the same source, he plans to reprimand MTG privately and will encourage House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to remove her from the committee if another similar incident occurs during a public hearing.
This wouldn’t be the first time the Georgia legislature has faced commission removal.
The House voted 230 to 199 in February 2021 to remove MTG from both the Education and Labor Committee and the Budget Committee. Eleven Republicans voted with Democrats to pass the measure.
Even suggestions that MTG could be removed from her new panel assignment by her own party show the escalating tensions within the House GOP.
During her allotted time at Wednesday’s hearing, Taylor Greene began attacking Swalwell after he showed a photo of her calling for the FBI to be abolished. Her rebuttal was to bring up a years-old incident in which Swalwell was accused of having a sexual relationship with Chinese spy Fang Fang.
While these allegations have led Republicans to call for the California Democrat to be removed from his committees, the issue had nothing to do with Wednesday’s hearing on the southern border crisis.
New York Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman wanted to remove the “completely inappropriate” words from the record after MTG’s attack, but the GOP-led panel rejected the motion.
When she resumed her speaking time, Greene accused Mayorkas of being a “liar” complacent in allowing fentanyl overdose deaths.
“Congressman, I can assure you we will not let it continue,” Mayorkas said.
Greene shot back, “No, I’m winning back my time. You are a liar. You let this continue. And the numbers prove it.’
MTG called out Democratic Representative Eric Swalwell and accused him of having a sexual relationship with and being compromised by a Chinese spy — a case unrelated to the hearing
Swalwell was allegedly targeted as part of a Chinese effort to get close to US politicians. Republicans claim he had a sexual relationship with the spy Christine Fang (right) – also known as Fang Fang
This time around, Democratic ranking member Bennie Thompson took the floor to ask that MTG’s words be removed from the record, as she refused to retract her comments when asked a second time.
The two separate clashes resulted in Green ruling that his Republican colleague could not speak for the remainder of the hearing – she left shortly after being silenced.
“It’s pretty clear that the rules say you can’t challenge someone’s character,” the chairman admitted. “Calling or identifying someone as a liar is unacceptable in this committee and I decide that we delete those words.”
The Tennessee Republican added, “When we strike, the time of the person speaking ends, so the gentleman is no longer recognized.”
MTG was not alone in being outraged by the fentanyl and people-smuggling crisis at the border and the perceived inaction of Mayorkas and the Biden administration.
Texas Republican Representative August Pfluger forced Mayorkas to confront a family who lost a grandmother and daughter in a car accident with a trafficker who felt under arrest.
Mayorkas offered his condolences at the hearing Wednesday to the family of grandmother Maria and her seven-year-old granddaughter, Emily Tambunga, who both died in a car accident caused by a human smuggler fleeing arrest about 100 miles from the southern border .
“They’re right behind you. They came here today because they want answers,” Pfluger said.
“They came here today because of the failure of you and your leadership. They came here because they want closure.’
Mayorkas stood up and turned to the family, not all of his words were captured by the video feed, but he could be heard saying, “My heart breaks for your loss.”
Maria Tambunga, 71, and Emilia Tambungar, 7, were killed last month in an accident involving a human smuggler evading arrest. Mayorkas was forced to confront their family at the hearing on Wednesday