Majorie Taylor Greene says the Republicans need a 'civil war' within the party to stop 'what's happening to our country' after Cheney and Kinzinger were censured for being on the January 6 committee

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene argued it was a good thing for the Republicans to have a ‘civil war’ within the party after GOP Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger were censured by the Republican National Committee for being on the January 6 select committee. 

‘No one likes to watch people fighting, and we’re supposed to support one another – respect and obey Reagan’s “11th commandment.” But If we are truly going to stop the assault on our freedoms and stop what’s happening to our country, where America is just being able to be sold out to the rest of the world, we have to lean into this civil war in the GOP,’ she said in an interview with The Washington Times that was published Sunday. 

The late Republican Ronald Reagan said the 11th Commandment was, ‘Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican.’ 

Greene, however, has thrown flames at a number of her GOP colleagues, including Cheney, Kinzinger and Reps. Nancy Mace and Dan Crenshaw. She also got into it with former President George W. Bush’s top strategist, Karl Rove.  

‘I love Ronald Reagan. I think he was a great president, but … I don’t believe in the “11th commandment.” I only believe in 10. Those are the commandments I believe in, and saying we can’t criticize each other is just being soft and going for failure because the truth is iron sharpens iron,’ Greene said. 

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (right) argued it was a good thing for the Republicans to have a ‘civil war’ within the party after GOP Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger were censured

 The Republican National Committee passed a resolution Friday to censure GOP Reps. Liz Cheney (left) and Adam Kinzinger (right) for their involvement in the January 6 select committe.

In the interview, Greene took particular offense to those Republicans who are trying to turn their backs on former President Donald Trump. 

‘They’re so naive,’ she said. ‘They’re so out of touch that they are saying, “Oh, he was a speed bump. It’s not who the Republican Party is. We’re gonna go back to being the uniparty with the Democrats where we all work together … and sell America out to the rest of the world.’   

She argued that Republicans needed to ‘go to battle on the ides and the policies that will actually support our country and the base and the people that vote us into office.’  

‘Then we can become the conference and we can become the party that’s actually going to solve the problems and serve the very people that send us to do that,’ Greene added.  

Her comments come after the RNC passed a resolution Friday to censure Cheney and Kinzinger for their involvement in the January 6 select committee.    

The measure was adopted by voice vote by the committee’s membership at the RNC’s winter meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah. Several RNC members voted nay, but they were in the minority.   

‘Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger crossed a line. They chose to join Nancy Pelosi in a Democrat-led persecution of ordinary citizens who engaged in legitimate political discourse that had nothing to do with violence at the Capitol. That’s why Republican National Committee members and myself overwhelmingly support this resolution,’ RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel said in a statement Friday. 

Cheney tweeted shortly after the vote: ‘This was January 6th. This is not “legitimate political discourse,”‘ she said, sharing video of members of the MAGA mob attacking the U.S. Capitol. 

The resolution claims that Cheney and Kinzinger are helping the Democrats maintain their Congressional majority. 

‘The Conference must not be sabotaged by Representatives Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger who have demonstrated, with actions and words, that they support Democrat efforts to destroy President Trump more than they support winning back a Republican majority in 2022,’ the resolution said.    

It said the RNC will ‘immediately cease any and all support’ of Cheney and Kinzinger, adding that the party denounces ‘those who deliberately jeopardize victory in November.’ Kinzinger isn’t running for re-election, but Cheney has attracted a pro-Trump challenger.  

A copy of the resolution passed Friday by the Republican National Committee to censure Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger and pull their party support 

RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel sent out a statement saying she supported the membership’s decision. She’s pictured addressing the winter meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, where the vote took place

The initial draft, obtained by the AP, accused Cheney and Kinzinger of serving as ‘pawns to parrot Democrat talking points’ on the House select committee. 

It also chided them for ‘pursuing what amounts to a third political impeachment of President Trump.’ 

The RNC, the political arm of the Republican Party, can’t compel the House GOP, under the leadership of Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, to punish Cheney and Kinzinger.  

On Thursday, the defiant duo vowed to fight former President Donald Trump’s lies after the resolution passed out of committee.   

‘The leaders of the Republican Party have made themselves willing hostages to a man who admits he tried to overturn a presidential election and suggests he would pardon Jan. 6 defendants, some of whome have been charged with seditious conspiracy,’ Cheney said.     

In a series of tweets, Rep. Liz Cheney said the leaders of the Republican Party ‘have made themselves willing hostages’ to former President Donald Trump 

Rep. Adam Kinzinger sang a similar tune saying members of the GOP ‘allowed conspiracies and toxic tribalism hinder their ability to see clear-eyed’ 

‘I’m a constitutional conservative and I do not recognize those in my party who have abandoned the Constitution to embrace Donald Trump,’ the Wyoming lawmaker added. ‘History will be their judge. I will never stop fighting for our constitutional republic. No matter what.’

Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican who will retire at the end of this term in lieu of facing a MAGA-backed primary opponent, echoed the sentiment. 

‘I’ve been a member of the Repubilcan Party long before Donald Trump entered the field,’ he said, adding that his ‘core beliefs’ have not changed.  

‘Rather than focus their efforts on how to help the American people, my fellow Republicans have chosen to censure to lifelong Members of their party for simply upholding their oaths of office,’ Kinzinger continued. ‘They’ve allowed conspiracies and toxic tribalism hinder their ability to see clear-eyed.’ 

‘My efforts will continue to be focused on standing up for truth and working to fight the political matrix that’s led us to this point,’ Kinzinger added. 

The resolution that passed Thursday through an RNC subcommittee is a watered-down version, according to the Associated Press.

The original version would have called on the House Republican Conference to oust Cheney and Kinzinger, the only two Republicans serving on the January 6 House select committee, which was formed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the top House Democrat, after the Senate Republican Leader MitchMcConnell tanked a bill that formed a 9/11-style bipartisan commission to investigate the Capitol attack. 

The subcommittee debated the censure motion for hours.   

‘We want to send a message that we’re disapproving of their conduct. It´s a middle ground,’ RNC member Harmeet Dhillon told the Associated Press, noting that the vote was unanimous.

‘This is not about being anti-Trump. There are many anti-Trump Republicans that are not included in this resolution. These two took a specific action to defy party leadership,’ she added.  

Sen. Mitt Romney, one of seven GOP senators who voted to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial, suggested the RNC’s actions were shameful in a Friday tweet 

Sen. Bill Cassidy, who also voted to convict Trump, was dismayed at the RNC’s decision to censure the two Republican lawmakers 

Two Republicans who voted to convict Trump during his second impeachment, over inciting the January 6 insurrection, lambasted the party for making the move. 

Sen. Mitt Romney tweeted, ‘Shame falls on a party that would censure persons of conscience, who seek truth in the face of vitriol.’ 

‘Honor attaches to Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger for seeking truth even when doing so comes at great personal cost,’ the Utah Republican said. 

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy indicated he was perplexed by the committee’s decision.

‘The RNC is censuring Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger because they are trying to find out what happened on January 6th – HUH?’ Cassidy tweeted. 

Additionally, Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw told The New York Times he thought the censure was ‘dumb stuff.’ 

The phrase ‘legitimate political discourse’ rattled Republican Sen. Ben Sasse. 

‘January 6th was not “legitimate political discourse” and I’ll say it again: It was shameful mob violence to disrupt a constitutionally-mandated meeting of Congress to affirm the peaceful transfer of power,’ he said, according to the National Review. 

McCarthy, the House’s GOP leader, was asked about the decision Friday afternoon on Fox. 

‘Look, there is a reason why Adam is quitting. There’s a reason why Liz Cheney is no longer in leadership and has very low poll rating in Wyoming,’ McCarthy replied.   

He said the January 6 panel was a ‘pure political committee,’ bringing up how several Congressional Democrats who served on the committee were upset Jeff Zucker resigned from CNN.   

‘I think those two individuals would have a hard time ever coming back to Congress,’ McCarthy again said of Kinzinger and Cheney.