Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) vowed at a Turning Point Action conference on Saturday to send former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci to prison for his response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Dr. Anthony Fauci should be tried for crimes against humanity,” Greene said at the conference. MediaiteThe crowd chanted, “Put him in jail!”
She responded, “Well, I promise if I had anything to do with this I would put him in jail. He’s the one who should be in jail.”
During her speech, Greene also attacked President Biden and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
“I will never forget how the Biden administration and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi deployed nearly 30,000 National Guard troops and turned the Capitol into a military base,” she told the crowd. “They forced schoolchildren to wear masks, they closed schools, they closed beaches, they silenced your speech.”
Biden was not president at the time. The Trump administration deployed the National Guard to guard the Capitol at the request of congressional leaders, including Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), after Trump supporters rioted inside the Capitol in an attempt to block Biden’s certification as president.
Greene is accused of aiding some of the insurrectionists by offering tours before Jan. 6, 2021.
The Biden administration enacted a mask mandate on public transportation after taking office on Jan. 20, 2021, but did not impose a mask mandate at the federal level.
Fauci has frequently come under attack from conservatives who say his insistence on mask-wearing and social distancing has restricted freedoms and been ineffective, and accuse him of covering up the origins of the COVID-19 virus.
The House COVID-19 subcommittee called Fauci to testify in a heated hearing earlier this month, where Republicans accused him of trying to circumvent federal Freedom of Information Act requests by using a private email server, a charge Fauci has denied.
Democrats quickly called for a moratorium on proceedings after Greene refused to acknowledge Fauci as a doctor, marking the hearing’s most contentious moment.
“Mr. Fauci, you’re not a doctor, but I talk to you for a few minutes and you become Mr. Fauci,” Greene said. “That man is not qualified to hold a medical license. In fact, his license should be revoked and he should go to jail,” Greene responded.
Fauci is set to release a book on June 18th. According to an excerpt obtained by The New York Times:Fauci spoke about his experience with Trump and his career, according to the Times. He has published a book titled “He Loves Me, He Doesn’t Love Me.” In it, he describes Trump telling Fauci he “loves him” but then hurling expletives at him.
