Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) were run out of their own press conference by unruly protestors, including one who refused to stop blowing a whistle and another holding a “RAPIST” sign. A woman repeatedly asked Gaetz if he’s a “pedophile” as he ran away.
Four members of the so-called Sedition Caucus – Gaetz and Greene along with Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) and Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) – were holding a presser today to denounce the House select committee hearing to investigate the January 6 Capitol insurrection where Donald Trump supporters stormed Congress to prevent it from accepting the results of the 2020 election. Five people have died related to those events.
Related: Marjorie Taylor Greene demands child be taken away from “unnatural” trans parents
At the start of the press conference, Greene complained about how the insurrectionists who have been arrested have been treated in prison and that there aren’t any Republicans who are close allies of Trump on the select committee, all while a protestor blew a whistle.
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And the literal whistle-blower refused to stop, even as other spectators told him to knock it off. Blowing a whistle while other people try to speak is perhaps the sort of freedom of speech absolutism that people like Greene – who thinks Twitter violated the First Amendment when it suspended her account for spreading COVID-19 lies – support.
The conference then turned even more chaotic. One protestor had a “TRAITORS + RAPISTS: SIT DOWN” sign, a reference to how Rep. Gaetz is under federal investigation for sex trafficking that allegedly involved minors.
Other Republicans spoke, and Greene took the podium again to call out “the guy that’s blowing the whistle” and tell him “we are not deterred.”
Her claim that they will not be deterred was belied just moments later: a staffer told her to wrap it up, shouting, “The left is interrupting the press conference, we need to end it.”
Greene and Gaetz were then escorted away by security as someone repeatedly shouted “Are you a pedophile?” at Gaetz.
The whistler is entirely drowning out the GOP members. pic.twitter.com/kgTO5xnwJL
— Zachary Petrizzo (@ZTPetrizzo) July 27, 2021
A band remains on 9th Street! pic.twitter.com/bNiY1MugJf
— Zachary Petrizzo (@ZTPetrizzo) July 27, 2021
CSPAN broadcast the press conference itself, complete with whistle-blowing.
