Marjorie Taylor Greene Is Terrified of the Media Watching Her Testify Under Oath

Marjorie Taylor Greene is going to appear in court on Friday. The media will be there, too, and she’s furious about it.

U.S. District Court Judge Amy Totenberg ruled earlier this week that an effort to disqualify the conspiracy theorist from running for reelection over her alleged role in the attack on the Capitol last Jan. 6 can proceed. The group who filed the challenge, Free Speech for People, is alleging that Greene is in violation of the 14th Amendment, which states that if someone took an oath to defend the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion,” they can’t serve in Congress.

Totenberg’s decision means Greene will have to testify under oath on Friday. Greene seems a little worried, perhaps because she’s built her entire career on pushing lies and unfounded conspiracy theories — from Jewish-funded space lasers starting the California wildfires to the 2020 election being stolen — and has little experience telling the truth, which she’ll now have to do lest she open herself up to perjury charges.

“You want to talk about it? It’s a big lie,” she said recently on One America News. “They want to talk about the big lie, this is the big lie and it’s destroying democracy.”

Greene grew even more animated about the media presence in the courtroom. “I really hope you guys get a camera in that courtroom,” she continued. “You know what the Democrats and the media are going to do: They’re going to click and cut and paste so they can sell a lie on their networks every night.”

The MTG meltdown continues pic.twitter.com/nKZPSX5UDz — The Republican Accountability Project (@AccountableGOP) April 20, 2022

Greene talking about “destroying democracy” is pretty rich. Rolling Stone reported last fall that Greene was one of several lawmakers who participated in the planning of the “Stop the Steal” rally that preceded the riot at the Capitol. She’s since valorized those who stormed the Capitol in attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 election results. “If you think about what our Declaration of Independence says, it says to overthrow tyrants,” she said in October.

Greene made the same argument against the media’s presence in the courtroom on The Jennis Ellis Show, hosted by Trump’s former election attorney. “It’s absurd what they are claiming and lying about,” she said on Tuesday. “They’re going to allow the press in the courtroom. They’re going to allow the whole thing to be videoed live. … You know what that’s going to look like. The Democrats and the nasty mainstream media … are going to be able to twist and turn and clip out any little piece they want.”

Marge getting scared for court Friday: “They’re going to allow the press in the courtroom. They’re going to allow the whole thing to be videoed live. They’re going to be able to clip out 😁any little piece they want of the horrible things .. they’re going to say about me.” pic.twitter.com/PJq4QpBh6u — Ron Filipkowski 🇺🇦 (@RonFilipkowski) April 19, 2022

Greene tried to block the effort to get her booted from the ballot earlier this month, arguing that the move is unconstitutional while “vigorously” denying that she “aided and engaged in insurrection.” Judge Totenberg didn’t buy it. “This case involves a whirlpool of colliding constitutional interests of public import,” the judge, who was appointed by President Obama, wrote. “The novelty of the factual and historical posture of this case — especially when assessed in the context of a preliminary injunction motion reviewed on a fast track — has made resolution of the complex legal issues at stake here particularly demanding.”

U.S. District Court Judge Richard Myers II, who was appointed by Trump, last week ruled in favor of Madison Cawthorn as the North Carolina representative moved to block a similar effort to disqualify him from Congress for his alleged involvement in the events of last Jan. 6. Cawthorn, like Greene, was mentioned in Rolling Stone‘s report about the organization of the rally that preceded the riot. Greene wasn’t as lucky as Cawthorn, but it will likely be hard to prove that she, or any of the other lawmakers who may have helped incite the riot, actually violated the 14th Amendment — even though the evidence against Greene in particular is pretty copious.

Regardless, Friday’s testimony could be illuminating. Up to this point, Greene has been free to peddle lies ad infinitum, and because Republican leadership doesn’t seem to care, the only real consequence she’s faced has been getting banned from Twitter. She’ll now have to speak not only under the specter of media scrutiny, but of perjury charges.