The GOP leader will sit down for a face-to-face conversation with Greene later this week, his office said. But whether McCarthy really removes her from her committee assignments, as many Democrats and even some Republicans are asking, depends on what her private interaction with Greene will look like.
Meanwhile, a group of House Democrats is determined to punish Greene for his rhetoric and conspiracy theories, and has devised a series of measures to do so. This includes two of the most severe sanctions that can be imposed on a member of Congress: formal censorship and expulsion from the Chamber.
Another measure – which MP Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Florida) plans to introduce on Monday – would expel Greene from all House committees.
For now, Democrats say they are waiting for McCarthy’s meeting with the freshman from Georgia, although few expect him to act alone.
“If we’re expecting Kevin McCarthy to have a moral compass … it will never happen,” Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.), Who represents the location of the Sandy Hook school shooting, told reporters on Monday. demanded the House’s action to remove Greene from all positions on the committee.
Wasserman Schultz said he plans to force a vote on his resolution within a few days, using a quick process that is reserved for privileged resolutions. Another resolution by Congressman Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.) To expel Greene from Congress is also privileged and could be raised this week.
So far, Greene has remained publicly challenging, although she has deleted some of her previous posts on social media. And over the weekend, she claimed she had spoken to Trump and had all his support, which could make it more difficult for McCarthy to punish Greene.
“I think Republican leaders should stand up and say what she said is totally unacceptable,” Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) told CNN’s Dana Bash in “State of the Union” on Sunday.
When asked whether Greene should be removed from his seats on the House Education and Work Commission and the House Budget Committee, Portman said it could send a strong message.
“I assume it is something they are looking at and I would not be surprised if that happened,” he said. “And you know, I think this is the way to send a message. The voters who elected you in your district in Georgia, you know, must be respected. On the other hand, when this type of behavior occurs, there must be a strong response. “
What the GOP decides to do about Cheney and Greene will offer significant clues about the party’s direction in the post-Trump era. Some Republicans are warning that punishing Cheney and leaving Greene untouched – and therefore aligning the party even more closely with Trump – could be a big black eye for the party on its way to 2022.
And next week, Trump’s impeachment trial will begin in the Senate. But despite a large number of Republicans, including minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Condemning Trump for inciting a crowd that attacked the Capitol, a conviction is highly unlikely; 45 Republicans said putting a former president on trial is unconstitutional.
“But the reality is this: this is a moment of choice. It is time to choose what we will be, “said Representative Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), Who voted for impeachment and is launching a new PAC to restore conservative principles for the Republican Party, said on NBC channel” Meet the Press “on Sunday.” And my goal when launching Country1st.com, number one, is just to say, look, let’s take a look at the past four years, how far we’ve gone in a bad way, how we look back are, how much we sell darkness and division. ”
“And this is not the party I signed up for, and I think most Republicans did not sign up for it,” he added.
The impending and confused intra-party battle comes when McCarthy pleads with Republicans to stop publicly attacking each other. The minority leader, who is desperate to keep his ranks together as they refocus on next year’s races, has been trying to reconcile with Trump and even met him at his Florida resort last week. After the meeting, McCarthy made it clear that the former president would be an integral part of his efforts to win back the House.
“United and ready to win in 22,” McCarthy tweeted after his meeting with Trump.
However, some Republicans, including Florida’s arsonist Rep. Matt Gaetz, blatantly ignored McCarthy’s pleas for party unity. Last week, Gaetz even campaigned against Cheney flying to Wyoming, where Donald Trump Jr. called the demonstration via speakerphone. Notably, the son of the former president also praised McCarthy as leader of the Republican Party.
“I saw it first hand since 2016 that @GOPLeader has been the strongest Republican Party leader of my life, ”he tweeted, alongside a photo of Trump and McCarthy from their recent meeting. “He always fought for my father and our movement. Proud to call Kevin a friend and I am excited to work closely with him to retake the House in 2022! “
Meanwhile, Democrats are already signaling that their 2022 campaign strategy will focus heavily on trying to unite the entire Republican Party with Greene and the peripheral QAnon movement. Over the weekend, spokeswoman Nancy Pelosi’s office released a press release listing McCarthy’s party affiliation as “QAnon” instead of GOP.