Topline
Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is abandoning her plan to launch a right-wing congressional group dubbed the America First Caucus after the publication of a seven-page platform vowing to protect “Anglo-Saxon political traditions” by congressional newsletter Punchbowl News, her spokesperson told Forbes.
WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 5: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) speaks during a press conference … [+] outside the U.S. Capitol on February 5, 2021 in Washington, DC. The House voted 230 to 199 on Friday evening to remove Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) from committee assignments over her remarks about QAnon and other conspiracy theories. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Key Facts
“She’s not planning on launching it at this time,” the spokesperson said, adding that it was “in the early planning stages” but that the publication of the document by Punchbowl “[blew] it all up.”
Greene spokesperson Nick Dyer had told Forbes earlier Saturday the platform was “never approved or agreed to by Congresswoman Greene,” with Greene calling it a “staff level draft proposal from an outside group that I hadn’t read” in a subsequent statement.
Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), who was reported to be planning the group with Greene, claimed in a statement to have first learned of the platform “by reading about it in the news yesterday, like everyone else,” adding, “Let me be perfectly clear, I did not author this paper.”
Gosar also suggested he wouldn’t be joining a splinter group, vowing to “continue to work on America First issues in the House Freedom Caucus,” an established right-wing caucus that has reacted negatively to the emergence of a new group.
Forbes has reached out to spokespeople for Gosar and Greene for further comment.
Tangent
Members of Congress in both parties interpreted the platform’s references to “Anglo-Saxon political traditions” and “the progeny of European architecture” as coded white supremacist language. “The Republican Party is the party of Lincoln & the party of more opportunity for all Americans—not nativist dog whistles,” tweeted McCarthy.
Key Background
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) told Forbes on Friday that the America First Caucus was a real group Greene had founded and said he was “looking” at joining – though he added that he “hadn’t seen” the platform. He defended the idea of the group and argued it is “not supposed to be about race at all.”
Chief Critic
“I believe anyone that joins this caucus should have their committees stripped, and the Republican conference should expel them from conference participation,” tweeted Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), a vocal critic of the GOP’s hard-right elements. “While we can’t prevent someone from calling themselves Republican, we can loudly say they don’t belong to us.”
What To Watch For
While Gosar suggested he will not be joining the America First Caucus, Greene appeared to leave open the possibility of a right-wing splinter group. “I have plans to drive President Trump’s America First agenda with my Congressional colleagues,” she said, adding, “America First policies will save this country.”