ATLANTA — Georgia Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene took the witness stand Friday to push back against a legal challenge filed by a group of her constituents who want her banned from seeking office over her role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
In a series of testy exchanges over the course of several hours, Greene dodged many of the questions posed by an attorney for challengers, sometimes saying she didn’t remember her remarks or interactions in the run-up to the deadly pro-Donald Trump mob.
But she insisted throughout the proceeding that while she promoted the pro-Trump “Stop the Steal” rally, she never encouraged — or participated in — the violent riot that sought to block the formal vote to certify Joe Biden’s victory.
The court hearing attracted intense media attention, in part because Greene is the first member of Congress to testify publicly and under oath about the events that led to the riot and in part because she’s one of the nation’s most polarizing politicians.
At issue was a challenge filed by five of Greene’s constituents that contends the first-term lawmaker violated a provision of the 14th Amendment by engaging in an insurrection to block the peaceful transfer of power.
The challengers’ attorney, Andrew Celli, pressed her throughout the proceeding on her online activity and public remarks urging Trump supporters to gather outside the Capitol as lawmakers prepared to confirm Biden’s win.
Often, she responded to the questions by simply saying, “I don’t remember” to the attorneys, who quickly told the judge they would treat her as a hostile witness. Other times, she berated Celli for use of “biased”media sources as she rejected his line of inquiry.
“I never mean anything for violence,” she said in response to one query. “None of my words, never ever, mean anything for violence.”
Her attorneys framed the challenge as an effort to deprive Georgians of a choice at the ballot box — little more than a publicity stunt, they argued, to help Greene’s political opponents.
“The right to vote is at stake — right here, right now,” said Greene attorney James Bopp. “Because they want to deny the right to vote to the thousands of people in the 14th District of Georgia by having Greene removed from the ballot.”
Ron Fein, another attorney for the challengers, told Administrative Judge Charles Beaudrot that the most devastating witness against Greene is her own public remarks, which included what he framed as a code word for violence by calling the protests a “1776 moment.”
“Instead, it turned out to be our 1861 moment,” said Fein, the legal director of Free Speech For People, the national group that brought the legal challenge.
Throughout the hearing, Beaudrot expressed skepticism about the challengers’ legal argument. At one point, he warned one of the attorneys that he’s “pushing the envelope” while bringing up Greene’s past incidents; in another, he cut off a line of questioning after Greene said she didn’t remember.
“She said she does not recall,” Beaudrot said. “That is the answer. Now move on.”
During the hearing, Greene acknowledged she promoted the pro-Trump “Stop the Steal” rally that preceded the deadly attack. But she said she opposed the violent mob that stormed the building, which forced her and other congressional members to hastily evacuate.
Instead, she cast herself as a devoted Trump supporter who used rhetoric about the “1776 moment” to signify her support for “patriots” — and not a call for an insurrection. When asked whether she or her aides gave tours of the Capitol complex to the mob’s organizers, she chuckled.
“We got our keys to our office on Jan. 3,” she said. “I couldn’t even find the bathroom most of the time.”
The legal hearing put Greene, used to the rhythm of political rallies and stump speeches, in a starkly different role. When Greene tried to use one question about her remarks to criticize House Democrats, Celli admonished her to simply answer his query.
In another exchange, Celli asked her about a tweet she sent urging demonstrators to appear at the Capitol.
“You’re speculating on why I’m tweeting that,” she said.
“Ms. Greene, I’m just asking questions,” he responded.
“And I’m just answering them,” she fired back.
When attorneys for the challengers played video clips of Greene’s remarks, she often accused them of being “spliced” or unfavorably edited. When she was shown media coverage from CNN and other outlets of her comments, she accused the sources of bias.
And when Celli tried to draw a line between Greene’s remarks and the movie “Independence Day,” Greene scoffed at the idea.
“You are giving us quite the entertainment today,” said Greene.
Greene’s assertion during the legal hearing that she hasn’t condoned violence on social media runs counter to a background that includes racist, xenophobic and antisemitic remarks and a past belief in the deranged QAnon conspiracy theory that accused Democrats and celebrities of seeking to exploit kids.
Before she was elected, Greene expressed support for a dangerous conspiracy theory about child abuse and endorsed posts that called for the execution of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She also endorsed Facebook comments about executing law enforcement agents who were in the “deep state.”
After she took office, she has had confrontations with Democratic House members, including Reps. Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, that both have described as harassment.
The legal proceedings brought a crush of attention to the normally staid state administrative court process.
More than a dozen TV reporters gathered outside the downtown Atlanta tower where the courtroom is housed, using busy Peachtree Street as a backdrop for live reports.
Inside the fourth-floor hearing room, Greene supporters erupted into applause as she entered with her attorneys, triggering a stern rebuke from a deputy. She was joined by Florida U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, another controversial Republican who is one of her most steadfast allies in Congress.
The challenge to Greene’s eligibility is similar to cases filed against four other lawmakers in North Carolina and Arizona. Those challenges also cited a provision in the 14th Amendment that bars members of Congress from serving if they participated in an insurrection or rebellion against the government.
Greene’s case, however, is so far the only one that has been allowed to advance to an evidentiary hearing. Beaudrot must now deliver his findings to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who will then determine if Greene is qualified to appear on the ballot.
It will put Raffensperger, who is facing a Trump-backed Republican challenger, in a peculiar spot. He attracted Trump’s fury after he refused the then-president’s demand to “find” enough votes to overturn Biden’s victory.
Greene, too, is facing several challengers from both sides of the aisle as she seeks a second term representing the deeply conservative northwest Georgia district. She’s heavily favored to win reelection, and has used the legal challenge to fuel new fundraising appeals.
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