Pelosi slams McCarthy's 'cowardly' refusal to take action against Marjorie Taylor Greene

Nancy Pelosi.
(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) mocked House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Wednesday, after he condemned statements made by QAnon conspiracy theorist Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) but did not announce any disciplinary actions against her.

Prior to being elected last year, Greene made several anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, and racist remarks, claimed school shootings were staged, and endorsed the idea of executing Democratic leaders like Pelosi. Democrats have been calling on Greene to resign, and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have spoken out against her comments.

McCarthy said on Wednesday that he spoke with Greene and "made it clear that as a member of Congress we have a responsibility to hold ourselves to a higher standard than how she presented herself as a private citizen." He did not strip Greene of her committee assignments, or announce any other disciplinary actions.

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Pelosi found this to be a woefully inadequate response, referring to him in a statement as "Rep. Kevin McCarthy (Q-CA.)." Because he is "refusing to take action," Pelosi said, the House will vote on Thursday "to strip Greene of her seat on the esteemed House Committee on Education & Labor and House Committee on Budget. McCarthy's failure to lead his party effectively hands the keys over to Greene — an anti-Semite, QAnon adherent, and 9/11 Truther."

There are several Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), who have called on the party to take action against Greene, and McCarthy's refusal to do so is "cowardly," Pelosi said.

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Catherine Garcia

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.