Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) issued an apology during a June 15 press conference for comparing mask mandates to the Holocaust.
Greene had said in May regarding the requirements to wear a mask on Capitol Hill: “We can look back at a time in history where people were told to wear a gold star, and they were definitely treated like second-class citizens, so much so that they were put in trains and taken to gas chambers in Nazi Germany. And this is exactly the type of abuse that [Speaker of the House] Nancy Pelosi is talking about.”
In her press conference, Greene said that one of the lessons she learned from her late father is that “when you make a mistake, you should own it.” She said that after visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. earlier in the day, she realized “there’s nothing comparable to it. It happened, and you know, over six million Jewish people were murdered. More than that, there were not Jewish people–Black people, Christians, children, people the Nazis didn’t believe were good enough or perfect enough.”
Greene added that some people deny the Holocaust occurred altogether. “There is no comparison to the Holocaust, and there are words that I have said and remarks that I’ve made that I know are offensive and for that I want to apologize for.”
https://twitter.com/AndrewSolender/status/1404561740365537283?s=20
Former New York Democratic Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who also heads Americans Against Antisemitism, commended Greene for her apology in a tweet. “@SpeakerPelosi should take note of what a sincere apology and teachable moment looks like! It takes great courage to not only admit an error but to fix its cause. Well done @RepMTG.”
He added that Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) “isn’t capable of such an apology [because] she’s ideologically ‘anti-Israel’ (anti-Jewish)…”
.@SpeakerPelosi should take note of what a sincere apology and teachable moment looks like!
It takes great courage to not only admit an error but to fix its cause.
Well done @RepMTG. @Ilhan isn’t capable of such an apology bc she’s ideologically “anti-Israel” (anti-Jewish)… https://t.co/zAHK1KsVld
— Dov Hikind (@HikindDov) June 15, 2021
The American Jewish Congress announced in a statement that they are not accepting Greene’s apology, as the organization’s president, Jack Rosen, called for Greene to “find a different career. “Her values don’t align with what we expect out of our Congresspeople. There should be no place in American political dialogue for equating the extermination of six million Jews with life-saving medical intervention. This type of theater is not merely outrageous, it is dangerous: diminishing the atrocities committed by Nazis is tantamount to denial. The Holocaust is a not a stain that can or should be wiped clean, lest it happen again.”
Journalist Ben Jacobs asked Greene if she still stood by her comparison of the Democratic Party to the Nazis; Greene replied that “socialism is extremely dangerous,” criticizing “censorship with social media” as well as “things being taught where one race is being told it is racist like critical race theory.” “These are things we’re seeing and policies coming out of the Democratic Party that I think are dangerous for everyone.”
I asked Marjorie Taylor Greene today if she still stood by her comparison of the Democratic Party to the Nazi Party after she said nothing was comparable to the Holocaust. This was her answer pic.twitter.com/GLXLVdJQQP
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) June 15, 2021
