Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene accused of threatening GOP colleague with warning that millions of Trump supporters 'are watching' her
- "The Trump loyal 75 million are watching," Rep. Greene tweeted about Rep. Herrera Beutler.
- Herrera Beutler had earlier said she had evidence damaging to Trump's impeachment defense.
- Impeachment managers eventually decided not to admit witnesses but to admit her testimony on record.
Democrats and legal experts have accused Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of seeking to intimidate GOP colleague Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler in a tweet in which Greene warned that millions of Donald Trump loyalists "are watching" her.
In a tweet, Georgia representative Greene attacked Herrera Beutler after she released a statement Friday saying that she could corroborate details of a report claiming that Trump has sided with rioters in a call with House minority leader Kevin McCarthy on January 6 as they tore through the Capitol.
The latest evidence briefly promised to disrupt the impeachment trial as it drew to a close. At first, House impeachment managers decided to call Herrera Beutler as a witness, then reversed the decision and instead admitted her testimony to the record.
Greene sent the tweet when it appeared likely that Herrera Beutler would be subpoenaed as a witness.
"First voting to impeach innocent President Trump, then yapping to the press and throwing @GOPLeader under the bus," tweeted Greene about Herrera Beutler Saturday. "And now a tool as a witness for the Democrats running the circus trial. The Trump loyal 75 million are watching."
Greene was apparently referring to the nearly 75 million Americans who voted for Trump in 2020's presidential election.
Critics accused the far-right Greene of seeking to intimidate a potential impeachment witness.
"Marj Greene is threatening a fellow GOP Rep-who is a witness-on Twitter. Greene must be banned immediately," tweeted Scott Dworkin, founder of the liberal grassroots group the Democratic Coalition, before the decision was made not to call new witnesses.
."@mtgreenee is straight-up threatening potential material fact witnesses. On Twitter," tweeted Bradley Moss, a national security attorney.
Greene's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the accusations that her tweet was a form of intimidation.
According to reports, some GOP lawmakers won't publicly oppose Trump because they're fearful of a violent backlash from Trump's base. During the January 6 riot, some Trump supporters chanted for Republicans they accused of betraying the president, such as Vice President Mike Pence, to be killed.
While Herrera Butler has supported Trump's impeachment and is regarded as part of the party's moderate wing, Greene is on the far right of the party and has adamantly opposed Trump's impeachment.
In recent weeks Democrats have called for her to be expelled from Congress and have removed her from committee assignments after her support for several groundless right-wing conspiracy theories emerged.
Greene had also liked social media posts calling for violence against prominent Democrats. She has supported disproven conspiracy theories such as Pizzagate, QAnon, and false flag shootings.