Staff Reports
In an exclusive interview with Secrets, the gutsy lawmaker, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, put her foot down and called out her colleagues for not getting behind her push to block “political prosecutions.” She didn’t hold back, saying, “It should be a Republican priority. And it’s not. It’s not because they really don’t care.”
.@RepMTG rips GOP ‘hypocrites’ in abandoning Jan. 6 riot suspects https://t.co/4HTrjg7gso https://t.co/4HTrjg7gso
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) February 29, 2024
In a dramatic scene amid a driving rain shower, Greene boldly announced the reintroduction of legislation aimed at reforming how suspects in political protests are treated. She argued that Jan. 6 suspects and those convicted of riot-related charges have been hit with excessively harsh sentences and faced brutal jail conditions.
The legislation, known as the Matthew Lawrence Perna Act, was inspired by the tragic story of Matthew Perna, a man who tragically took his own life while awaiting sentencing for non-violently entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His family pointed the finger at the government’s plan to pile on additional charges, which they say drove him to despair.
Greene’s bill, a carbon copy of a previous proposed law by former Rep. Louis Gohmert, contains a crucial provision that would allow trials to be moved out of the Democrat-dominated Washington, D.C. This move is meant to provide a fairer trial for suspects, rather than being at the mercy of a location where over 90% of the inhabitants vote Democrat and support the prosecution of riot suspects.
At a powerful press conference, Greene stood alongside Matthew Perna’s aunt, Geri Perna, who didn’t mince words in slamming congressional members for not throwing their weight behind the legislation. Taking to social media, Geri Perna thanked Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene for standing up for the Jan. 6 defendants, emphasizing how she is the “ONLY Republican in congress who gives a sh-t about the J6ers!”
Frustrated by the lack of support from her fellow Republicans, Greene vented her disappointment, stating, “I’m just so frustrated here. You know, last Congress, I called it the ‘House of hypocrites.’ And I think the name still applies.”
Greene, never one to shy away from controversy, also hinted that her colleagues might suddenly find their voices on this issue if former President Donald Trump returns to the White House. She declared, “You know how this game works. It won’t become important to Republicans on the Hill until President Trump is in the White House and is actually doing something about it.”
True to her bold reputation, Greene has even taken the extraordinary step of visiting with Jan. 6 defendants in jail, showing unwavering support for those caught up in the aftermath of the Capitol riots.
