Marjorie Taylor Greene says she isn't afraid of a GOP civil war: 'We're going to fight it out'
- Marjorie Taylor Greene says she isn't afraid of a GOP civil war.
- She broke with her House Freedom Caucus allies on Monday and backed Rep. Kevin McCarthy for Speaker.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene isn't afraid of a GOP civil war.
"We're going to fight it out. I'm telling you — I've always said I'm not afraid of the civil war in the GOP. I lean into it," Greene told former Trump adviser Steve Bannon on his "War Room" podcast on Monday.
During her conversation with Bannon, Greene broke with her House Freedom Caucus allies and backed McCarthy's bid for House Speaker. Leaning into new fault lines in the GOP's right wing, she called a leadership challenge "very, very risky."
Striking a contradictory note, Greene in the same conversation also called for unity in the GOP in the face of what may be a thin majority in Congress.
"Politics is a blood sport," she told Bannon. "We have to do everything we can to stop our enemy. And the enemy is the Democrat Party."
McCarthy, the current House minority leader, is angling to take House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's job if the GOP wins the congressional midterms. He's facing a challenge from Arizona congressman and House Freedom Caucus member Andy Biggs.
Greene's stance on McCarthy has shifted over the last year. In November 2021, she said she did not think McCarthy had the votes to be Speaker. She added that she did not respect his leadership after he did not prevent Congress from stripping her and her GOP colleague, Rep. Paul Gosar, of their committee assignments. McCarthy, as minority leader, had little sway over whether Greene and Gosar could keep their committee assignments in a Democrat-led Congress.
Gosar was punished in November 2021 for tweeting a violent anime video that depicted him killing Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Democratic lawmakers in February 2021 accused Greene of endorsing violence against her colleagues and supporting right-wing fringe conspiracy theories.
Greene stands to benefit greatly if McCarthy wins. McCarthy has made efforts to patch things up with Greene, even pledging in March to give her key committee assignments if the GOP takes the House.
Greene's backing of McCarthy also highlights fault lines within the House's far-right faction. Her close ally Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz has for months slammed McCarthy, branding him a failure and proposing that he not lead the House GOP.
This schism became even more apparent on Monday when Gaetz said on "The Charlie Kirk Show" that he would not be voting for McCarthy to be Speaker.
Representatives for McCarthy did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.