Just Like Trump, Greene Still Remains Huge Obstacle To Democracy
One couldn’t find two members of congress more different; Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. and Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt.
In her latest, outlandish, irresponsible, mindless and divisive act, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., filed a motion Friday to disrupt the government and oust Speaker Mike Johnson from his post just five months into his tenure.
It was merely the latest firebomb tossed by the incendiary, conspiratorial, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, anti-Semitic and racist congresswoman. Her continuing strategy is to beg that the media and the citizens focus on her latest moment of absurdity, making her past history a distant blur.
Trump does the same thing with a new dangerous comment every day, making it next to impossible for voters or the media to chart his comments in totality.
Among those who have had enough of Greene’s shenanigans is first-term Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt. In July, Balint introduced a resolution to censure Greene for controversial comments she has made over the past five years. The resolution was dropped after the Republicans agreed to withdraw the censure resolution against Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich. over her criticism of Israel.
Balint was discouraged but not dismissed and said she would “hold back on the vote for now.” But if she couldn’t win a censure, she at least could put on the public record the long litany of Greene’s bombastic ways, from her outright support of white nationalists to her never-ending backing for trump’s election fraud lies.
In no special order, Greene was chastised on July 25, 2023, because she has:
· “Repeatedly fanned the flames of racism, antisemitism, LGBTQ hate speech, Islamophobia, anti-Asian hate, xenophobia, and other forms of hatred.”
· “Repeatedly debased the memories of thousands of victims of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, by perpetuating conspiracy theories to shift blame and responsibility for the mass murder.”
· “Repeatedly assaulted the foundation of our democracy by perpetuating conspiracy theories related to the January 6 attack on the Capitol which sought to halt the peaceful transfer of power.”
· “Repeatedly called for violence against elected representatives and their families.”
· “Repeatedly espoused antisemitic rhetoric and conspiracy theories, including through inflammatory evocations of the Holocaust.”
· On May 20, 2021, Greene “said that the mask mandate in the House of Representatives was akin to Jews being ‘put in trains and taken to gas chambers in Nazi Germany.’”
· On May 25, 2021, Greene tweeted that, “Vaccinated employees get a vaccination logo just like the Nazi’s forced Jewish people to wear a gold star”.
· On Feb. 26, 2022, Greene appeared at a White nationalist event that was condemned by the Republican Jewish Coalition as “appalling and outrageous that a Member of Congress would share a platform with an individual who has actively spread antisemitic bile, mocked the Holocaust and promoted dangerous anti-Israel conspiracy theories.”
· On Sept. 1, 2022, Greene tweeted “comparing President Joe Biden to Adolf Hitler that said ‘Joe Biden is Hitler. #NaziJoe has to go.’”
· On Sept. 1, 2022 Greene “posted another tweet of a doctored video showing President Biden speaking with audio of Hitler, swastikas in the background and a mustache akin to that of Hitler.”
· On July 21, 2021, Greene said that “if she was ‘in charge’ she would ‘kick out every single Chinese in this country that is loyal to the CCP. They would be gone.’”
· On Dec. 19, 2021, while at a Turning Point USA conference, Greene “referred to Asian Americans as ‘yellow people,’ a slur that has been historically used to malign the Asian-American community in the United States.”
· “Greene has a history of perpetuating LGBTQ hate speech, including through her use of offensive posters in the halls of congressional office buildings beginning on Feb. 24, 2021.
· On Nov. 22, 2022, Greene tweeted “that an LGBTQ California State Senator was a ‘communist groomer,’ an offensive slur that has been used to stoke fear and incite hatred of LGBTQ Americans.”
· On March 7, 2023, Greene “again referred to members of the LGBTQ community as ‘groomers’ and spouted anti-trans rhetoric on the Floor of the House of Representatives.”
· On June 1, 2023, the first day of Pride Month, Greene “tweeted a photo showing an anti-trans poster that she had displayed in the hall outside of her congressional office.”
· On Feb. 22, 2019, “Greene posted a video on Facebook claiming that Muslim-American Members of Congress were not ‘really official’ because they didn’t take the oath of office on the Bible.”
· On June 17, 2020, Politico reported that Greene “repeatedly engaged in Islamophobic rhetoric and suggested that Muslim Americans do not belong in the United States Government.”
· On May 10, 2021, “Greene referred to fellow Muslim-American Members of Congress as the ‘Jihad Squad.’”
· On Nov. 30, 2021, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene yet again referred to fellow Muslim-American Members of Congress as the “Jihad Squad.”
· On June 17, 2020, Politico reported that Greene “referred to Black Americans as ‘slaves to the Democratic Party’ and said that they should be proud to see Confederate monuments.”
· On June 17, 2020, Politico further reported that Greene stated in a video, “I know a ton of White people that are as lazy and sorry and probably worse than Black people.”
· On May 18, 2023, “Greene compared being called a White supremacist to a person of color being called the ‘N-word,’ a vile racial slur.”
· On Jan. 28, 2021, a video of Greene resurfaced in which she “used a harmful and offensive slur targeting Americans with disabilities which the National Down Syndrome Society called ‘heartbreaking and unacceptable.’”
· Whereas, on November 1, 2018, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene denied the attacks on September 11 saying there was a “so-called plane that crashed into the Pentagon” and that “It’s odd there’s never any evidence shown for a plane in the Pentagon.”
· On Nov. 17, 2018, Greene “peddled a vile antisemitic trope when she claimed that wildfires in California were caused by space lasers operated by members of the Jewish community.”
· Whereas, on August 17, 2020, a video of Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene resurfaced in which she stated that “the mass shooting at a country music festival in Las Vegas, Nevada, where 60 people were murdered, was perpetuated in order to pass anti-gun legislation.”
· On Jan. 19, 2021, Media Matters published a screenshot of a Facebook comment from “where she emphatically agreed that the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 students and teachers were murdered, was a false flag event.”
· On Jan. 21, 2021, Media Matters published a screenshot of a Facebook comment liked by Greene “that claimed 9/11 was ‘done by our own Gov,’ to which she responded ‘That is all true.’”
· The same comment liked and agreed to by Greene “further claimed that the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary where 26 people, including 20 precious children were murdered, was staged.”
· On Sept. 3, 2020, “Greene posted an image of herself holding a gun next to images of three Members of Congress with a caption encouraging ‘going on offense’ against them.”
· On Jan. 26, 2021, CNN reported on posts, comments and likes made by Greene from 2018 and 2019 in which Greene “liked several posts and comments on Facebook demonstrating her support for the execution of several Members of the Democratic Party including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and President Barack Obama.”
· On Jan. 26, 2021, CNN further reported that Greene “liked a Facebook comment in January 2019 that stated, “‘a bullet to the head would be quicker’ in reference to the removal of Speaker Nancy Pelosi”
· On Jan. 26, 2021, CNN also reported that deleted videos showed Greene “calling for the execution of Speaker Nancy Pelosi and stating that she was ‘a traitor to our country, she’s guilty of treason’ and should ‘suffer death or she’ll be in prison.’”
· Greene has “perpetuated the ‘big lie’ related to the 2020 Presidential election by espousing conspiracy theories and by threatening and inciting violence.”
· On Oct. 26, 2021, Greene “downplayed the actions of those who participated in the January 6 attack on the Capitol and said ‘if you think about what our Declaration of Independence says, it says to overthrow tyrants.’”
· On Nov. 4, 2021, “Greene went to visit those incarcerated related to the January 6 attack on the Capitol in what she referred to as ‘the patriot wing’ of the D.C. Jail.”
· On Nov. 10, 2021, Greene referred to those who participated in the January 6 attack on the Capitol as “political prisoners of war.”
· On Dec. 10, 2022, Greene said that “if she had organized the January 6 attack on the Capitol, ‘we would have won. Not to mention, it would’ve been armed.’”
· On July 19, 2023, Greene “displayed graphic pornographic images during an official committee hearing that she claimed depicted a member of President Biden’s family.”
· On July 19, 2023, Greene sent an official press release and posted to her official congressional website public hearing commentary “featuring graphic pornographic images she claimed depicted a member of President Biden’s family.”
Balint, 55, is a picture of a patriot, the opposite of the self-serving, undemocratic Greene.
Greene has accused protesters over the Gaza War to be fomenting an “insurrection.” She also remains a staunch opponent of further military aide to Ukraine.
Balint is a strong supporter of increased military aide to Ukraine. In October 2023, Balint supported Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip in response to the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. But in November she became the 32nd member of Congress and the first Jewish congressperson to call for a cease fire.
“Even with Hamas operations intentionally embedded among civilians, Israel cannot bomb targets in densely populated areas. The United States must demand it,” Balint said.
Balint was a member of the Vermont State Senate from 2015 to 2023. She was the majority leader from 2017 to 2021, and president pro tempore from 2021 to 2023. Balint was elected to congress in 2022 and is expected to seek a second term.
She was born in Heidelberg, West Germany, and raised in Peekskill, N.Y. Balint has degrees from Harvard University, and University of Massachusetts Amherst. Greene has a bachelor of business administration degree from the University of Georgia.
Balin moved to Vermont in 1994, and worked as a teacher, rock-climbing instructor, and columnist for the Brattleboro Reformer, and was active in local politics. She was elected to the State Senate in 2014, becoming the first openly acknowledged lesbian to serve there. She was selected to serve as majority leader and later elected president pro tempore, the first woman and openly LGBT person to do so in Vermont.
Balint is the first woman and openly LGBT person to represent Vermont in Congress. Vermont had been the only state that had not previously elected a woman to Congress.
Balint’s grandfather was killed during the Holocaust and her Hungarian-Jewish father immigrated to the U.S. in 1957. In the sixth grade, she admitted to having a crush on a female classmate, for which other students taunted her, including writing “lezzie” on her locker.
Balint became interested in politics at an early age, which she later attributed to having been raised in a family affected by the Holocaust and observing how government actions affect women and minorities, including gays and lesbians.
She graduated magna cum laude from Smith with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and women’s studies in 1990, received a Master of Education degree from Harvard University in 1995, and completed a Master of Arts degree in history from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2000. At Smith College, Balint was coxswain for the women’s crew team, who nicknamed her “the Admiral” because of her leadership skills.
Balint moved to Vermont in 1994,[2] and taught middle school history and social studies and worked as a rock-climbing instructor at Farm & Wilderness summer camps in Plymouth, Vermont, in addition to teaching at the Community College of Vermont in Brattleboro and writing a column for the Brattleboro Reformer. She met Elizabeth Wohl in 2000; they formed a civil union in 2004, moved to Brattleboro in 2007, and got married in 2009, after same-sex marriage was legalized in Vermont. They have two children.
In Congress, Balint sponsored legislation to limit police involvement with immigration enforcement by the federal government, opposing trump’s support for a federal registry on religious and immigration status. She voted to expand background checks on gun sales in 2018. The Vermont Conservation Voters gave her a lifetime score of 100 percent.
Balint opposes voter identification on the grounds that voter fraud is extremely rare and that voter ID laws are used to restrict people from voting. She supported legislation that sent all voters mail-in ballots and sponsored legislation to implement ranked choice voting for presidential and congressional elections in Vermont.
Balint supported legislation to prohibit conversion therapy on minors. She supported legislation banning the gay panic defense, which passed unanimously in the state senate. She and Speaker Jill Krowinski apologized for Vermont’s involvement in eugenics, including legislation from 1931 that supported a eugenics study conducted by Henry Farnham Perkins.[In 2021, she voted for an amendment to the Constitution of Vermont to codify Roe v. Wade.