Georgia’s new congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who does not support QA, caused a stir on Sunday at the new Congress when she refused to wear a mask, despite requests from House officials. according to Jake Sherman of Politico. “Two new Republicans – including. @ Mtgreenee – are being told by city officials that they need to put on their masks. as of now, they seem to be telling employees that they are not going to put it on. Taylor Greene is leaving the room with the other R, who was trying to identify, ”tweeted Sherman. He noted that Trump’s ally Louie Gohmert (R-TX) – who pushed to overturn the presidential election result – was also unmasked in the House floor. After Greene’s refusal to disguise himself, Republican and Democratic officials entered “a screaming dispute on the floor. So, this Congress is already going very well, ” Sherman tweeted.
The ceremony comes amid a dramatic increase in COVID-19 cases across the country. Several members of the House were quarantined due to exposure to COVID and participated in the swearing-in and voting for president of “safe” plexiglass cabinets, according to Capitol Hill doctor Brian Monahan.
Greene later attacked on Twitter, directing his ire at Democratic Congresswoman Gwen Moore, who announced on December 28 that she had tested positive for COVID. Moore told a reporter on Sunday that she was quarantined for 2 weeks (raising questions about the date of her diagnosis) and that her doctor informed her that it was safe to attend the oath. However, Moore was not using a plexiglass wrapper to vote, supposedly annoying republicans. Greene complained: “@SpeakerPelosi changed the rules of COVID because she is desperate to hold on to the hammer. Nobody can attack me for masks when Pelosi is sending Democrats to the floor with positive COVID tests to vote for her for president. “
Meanwhile, a new member of Congress never attended the ceremony: Luke Letlow, a 41-year-old Republican, died of the virus just before the new year.
With additional reporting by Arya Hodjat