Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia recently discussed the issue of Ashli Babbitt’s death during the January 6th protest inside the Capitol, comparing her death to the death of Tyre Nichols at the hands of police.
Speaking on that, she first said “I think that the judge and the jury and the trial needs to work out what happened there, but I share that with you, but I’d like to also point something that I’d hope you share with me.”
She then turned to the topic of Ashli Babbitt, with Babbitt’s mother in the room, and said “There’s a woman in this room whose daughter was murdered on Jan. 6, Ashli Babbitt. And Ashli Babbitt has, there’s never been a trial. As a matter of fact, no one has cared about the person that shot and killed her and no one in this Congress has really addressed that issue.”
Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy was then asked about MTG’s comments, and his response was appalling.
“I think the police officer did his job,” he said.
McCarthy’s statement was something of a surprise, as he has previously made overtures to the right by pledging to release the full security footage from January 6th shortly after he was elected to the Speaker of the House position. He is yet to fulfill that pledge.
Former President Donald Trump, who backed Speaker McCarthy during the Speaker of the House election saga, disagreed with McCarthy quite strongly. He fired back on Truth Social in a statement about how wrong Speaker McCarthy was, saying:
“I totally disagree with the Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, in that the Police Officer “Thug,” who has had a very checkered past to begin with, was not just “doing his job” when he shot and killed Great Patriot Ashli Babbitt at point blank range. Despite trying to keep him anonymous, shielded, and protected, this MISFIT proudly showed up on NBC Fake Nightly News “bragging” about the killing. He was not a hero but a COWARD, who wanted to show how tough he was. ASHLI BABBITT WAS MURDERED!!!,” he said.
The Capitol Police disagreed with the perspective of Trump and MTG. Releasing a statement on Babbitt’s death, the USCP said:
“USCP’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) determined the officer’s conduct was lawful and within Department policy, which says an officer may use deadly force only when the officer reasonably believes that action is in the defense of human life, including the officer’s own life, or in the defense of any person in immediate danger of serious physical injury.”
The Capitol Police also claimed that Byrd’s shooting of the unarmed woman potentially saved members of Congress, saying “potentially saved Members and staff from serious injury and possible death from a large crowd of rioters who forced their way into the U.S. Capitol and to the House Chamber where Members and staff were steps away.”
By: Will Tanner. Follow me on Twitter @Will_Tanner_1