The GOP leader will sit down for a personal meeting with Greene later this week, his office said. But whether McCarthy actually removes her from her committee duties, as many Democrats and even a few Republicans are asking, depends on how his private interaction with Greene goes.
Meanwhile, a group of House Democrats are determined to punish Greene for her rhetoric and conspiracy theories, and have put together a slew of measures to do so. That includes two of the toughest sanctions that can be taken against a member of Congress: formal censure and expulsion from the House.
Another measure – which Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) Plans to enter later Monday – would expel Greene from all House committees.
For now, Democrats say they are waiting for McCarthy’s meeting with the Georgia freshman, though few expect him to take action alone.
“If we wait for Kevin McCarthy to have a moral compass … that will never happen,” said Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.), Who represents the scene of the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting, to reporters. House law demanded that Greene be stripped of all committee positions.
Wasserman Schultz said she plans to enforce a ground vote on her resolution within days, using an expedited process reserved for privileged resolutions. Another resolution from Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.) To oust Greene from Congress is also privileged and could be brought up this week.
So far, Greene has remained publicly defiant, although she has scrubbed some of her past social media posts. And over the weekend, she claimed she spoke to Trump and had his full support, which could make it harder for McCarthy to punish Greene.
“I think Republican leaders should stand up and say it’s completely unacceptable what she’s said,” Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) told CNN’s Dana Bash on State of the Union on Sunday.
When asked if Greene should be stripped of her seats on the House Education and Labor Committee and the House Budget Committee, Portman said it could send a strong message.
“I suppose that’s something they’re looking at, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that happens,” he said. And you know, I think that’s the way to send a message. The voters who elected her in her Georgia district must be respected. On the other hand, when that kind of behavior occurs, there has to be a strong response. “
What the GOP decides to do with Cheney and Greene will provide important clues as to the direction of the party in the post-Trump era. Some Republicans warn that punishing Cheney while leaving Greene untouched – and thereby tie the party even more closely to Trump – could be a big black eye for the party heading into 2022.
And next week, the process of impeaching Trump in the Senate begins. But despite a slew of Republicans, including minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Who condemned Trump for inciting a mob attacking the Capitol, a conviction is highly unlikely; 45 Republicans have said it is unconstitutional to try a former president.
But the reality is this: this is a time to choose. It’s a time to choose what we’re going to be, “Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), Who voted to impeach and launch a new PAC aimed at restoring conservative principles in the GOP, said on NBC’s” Meet the Press “on Sunday”. And my goal in launching Country1st.com, number one, is just to say look, let’s take a look at the past four years, how far we’ve come in a bad way, how retarded we look, how much we deal with darkness and division. “
“And that’s not the party I ever signed up for, and I think most Republicans haven’t signed up for that,” he added.
The looming and messy battle between parties comes when McCarthy begs Republicans to stop publicly attacking each other. The minority leader, desperate to keep his ranks united as they turn their attention to next year’s midterm elections, has tried to make amends with Trump, even meeting him at his Florida resort last week. After the rendezvous, McCarthy made it clear that the former president would be an integral part of their efforts to reclaim the House.
“United and ready to win in ’22,” McCarthy tweeted after meeting Trump.
Still, some Republicans, including Florida firefighter Matt Gaetz, have blatantly ignored McCarthy’s pleas for party unity. Last week, Gaetz even campaigned against Cheney by flying to Wyoming, where Donald Trump Jr. participated in the meeting via the speakerphone. Notably, the former president’s son has also praised McCarthy as the GOP leader.
“I’ve seen that firsthand since 2016 @GOPLeader was the strongest House GOP leader of my life, ”he tweeted, alongside a photo of Trump and McCarthy from their recent meeting. “He has always fought for my father and our movement. Proud to call Kevin a friend and I am delighted to be working closely with him to take the house back in 2022! “
Democrats, meanwhile, are already indicating that their campaign strategy in 2022 will focus heavily on trying to tie the entire Republican Party to Greene and the fringe QAnon movement. Over the weekend, speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office released a press release listing McCarthy’s party affiliation as “QAnon” in place of the GOP.