Republicans are mad that the Library of Congress allowed Lizzo — a classically trained flutist — to play James Madison's 200-year-old crystal flute

• Republicans are mad Lizzo played James Madison's 200-year-old crystal flute at her Tuesday concert.
• The Library of Congress lent Lizzo the flute for the Washington D.C. stop of her "Special" tour.

Republicans are angry that the Library of Congress allowed Lizzo to play a historical flute at her D.C. concert.

On Tuesday, the Library of Congress lent Lizzo a 200-year-old crystal flute once gifted to James Madison for the Washington D.C. stop of her "Special" tour.

The rapper and singer — who is also a classically trained flutist — played a few notes on stage while doing what she does best: Twerking.

"Bitch I just twerked and played James Madison's crystal flute from the 1800s!" Lizzo said on stage.

"We just made history tonight!" Lizzo shouted to the audience on Tuesday. "Thank you to the Library of Congress for preserving our history and making history freaking cool! History is freaking cool you guys!"

In the days that followed, Republicans took to Twitter to complain about Lizzo's historical moment, with one even noting that anyone who was "involved in the decision to allow Lizzo to twerk while playing James Madison's flute needs to be deported."

"I don't care if they're citizens," Andrew McCarthy, who ran for Congress in New York, said. "Deport them somewhere."

Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro added to the conversation, calling the "Lizzo-flute controversy" something he has termed "Face Tattoo Phenomenon™," which he describes as "the phenomenon whereby someone does something deliberately controversial in an attempt to draw attention, and then acts offended when you notice."

"If all we had seen was the clip of Lizzo playing the flute in the halls of the Library of Congress while wearing a semi-modest outfit, everyone would have shrugged," Shapiro continued, commenting on Lizzo's sparkly leotard she donned on stage at her show. "But that's not the clip everyone championed as groundbreaking: it was the clip where she bragged about twerking."

Matt Walsh, a self-described "theocratic fascist," said that the Library of Congress was "simply desecrating American history just for the sake of it" by lending Lizzo the flute.

Walsh added that he doesn't "give a flying shit if it's an honor for her" to play this flute on stage.

He then hypothesized that the Library of Congress did this "as a form of racial retribution."

Nick Adams, a bestselling author of a number of conservative books, said "Lizzo isn't talented enough to play music on a $20 Yamaha Plastic Recorder off Amazon let alone a crystal flute once owned by James Madison."

"The Biden Administration is making a mockery of the country," Adams added.

Jenna Ellis, well known for her work on Donald Trump's legal team, said Lizzo "is basically famous, I think, for being one the most morbidly obese people in the world" on her talk show Wednesday.

"This is just desecration purposefully of America's history," Ellis continued. "And this just shows how much the left is laughing at American history."

She later tweeted that a behind-the-scenes performance of Lizzo playing the flute "fully clothed" was "quite lovely."

James Bradley, who is currently running for US Senate in California, compared Lizzo's performance to somebody taking "a dump on the American flag."

The Library of Congress declined to comment on responses from Republicans, but it previously celebrated its decision to lend Lizzo the flute.

"We just did a DNA test. Turns out: It's 100% that [crystal] flute @lizzo played at her D.C. stop on the #SpecialTour tonight," The Library of Congress tweeted late Tuesday, accompanied by a photo of the flute. "It's safe & sound back at the Library now."

"When Lizzo asked if she could play the flute at her Tuesday concert in front of thousands of fans, the Library's collection, preservation and security teams were up to the challenge," the Library of Congress said in a press release. "At the Library, curators ensure that the item can be transported in a customized protective container and a Library curator and security officer are always guarding the item until it is secured once more."

Representatives for Lizzo did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.