Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene slammed for declaring 'we're proud of the work we did on Jan. 6'


Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) took to the spotlight on Thursday to offer a reflection on last year's Capitol riot that varied pretty drastically from most others today.
The two Republicans first appeared on Stephen Bannon's podcast to declare "we're ashamed of nothing," as Gaetz put it, per Axios. "We're proud of the work we did on Jan. 6 to make legitimate arguments about election integrity," Gaetz continued, with Greene's agreement.
Later, they held a news conference (in lieu of a similar event by former President Donald Trump, who canceled his planned speech). Gaetz and Greene made the baseless claim that Capitol police, federal officials, and Democrats were in fact to blame for the violence that day. As The New York Times writes, "there is no evidence that undercover agents or other outsiders played a role in the attack."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
While Gaetz asserted "we're here to get to the truth behind Jan. 6, the federal government's own involvement with it," he and Greene received swift pushback against their unproven claims. With their news conference as the only GOP event in the Capitol today (many other Republicans were at an event to honor the late Sen. Johnny Isakson), critics like author Jessica Shortall argued "the party is 100% letting them be the face and stance of the party on this."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants