Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene claimed she was being sarcastic when she said MAGA rioters on Jan. 6 would have been armed and successful in their attempt to stop the peaceful transfer of power if she had organized it.
Speaking at the New York Young Republicans Club on Saturday, Greene appeared to hit back at accusations that she and Steve Bannon helped planned the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.
“If Steve Bannon and I had organized that, we would have won. Not to mention, we would’ve been armed,” Greene said. “See that’s the whole joke, isn’t it. They say that whole thing was planned and I’m like, are you kidding me? A bunch of conservatives, second amendment supporters, went in the Capitol without guns, and they think that we organized that?” Greene added.
On Monday, the White House condemned Greene’s comments.
“This violent rhetoric is a slap in the face to the Capitol Police, the DC Metropolitan Police, the National Guard, and the families who lost loved ones as a result of the attack on the Capitol. All leaders have a responsibility to condemn these dangerous, abhorrent remarks and stand up for our Constitution and the rule of law,” deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said in a statement.
In a statement, Greene said she was making a “sarcastic joke” and pushed back against criticism from the White House.
“The White House needs to learn how sarcasm works. My comments were making fun of Joe Biden and the Democrats, who have continuously made me a political target since January 6th,” Greene said in a statement. “Every day, I receive violent threats against my life simply because Democrats and the media have lied and smeared my character for the past two years.”
Supporters of Donald Trump stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 to stop the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory in the November 2020 presidential election. Some rioters targeted members of Congress and others were seen on video chanting “hang Mike Pence” after learning that then-Vice President Pence would not intervene to stop the certification of President Biden’s electoral victory.
Five police officers who defended the Capitol that day died and more than 100 were injured.
