MTG attacks lesbian teachers’ union president, repeats transphobic remarks
U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) told National Federation of Teachers President Randy Weingarten she is “not a mother” during Wednesday’s hearing by the U.S.
House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic. The congresswoman also repeated unsubstantiated claims that she made during a previous committee hearing with Weingarten on March 28, asserting that virtual learning had caused an increase in the number of youth in the U.S.
who identify as transgender. Greene had sought to blame Weingarten for advising the for advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on school closures. “While kids were forced to stay home, and you approved of this, the number of youths with gender dysphoria surged.” The firebrand congresswoman’s questioning of the teachers’ union president swerved into personal territory Wednesday when she asked, “are you a mother?” “I am a mother by marriage,” Weingarten answered. “And my wife is here with me, so I’m really glad that she’s here.” Later, Greene said to Weingarten, “The problem is, people like you need to admit that you’re just a political activist.
Not a teacher, not a doctor, and not a mother.” Two California Democrats on the committee, U.S. Reps. Robert Garcia and Raul Ruiz, spoke up in defense of Weingarten. “The decorum of the attacks on the witness were unacceptable, that the gentlelady from Georgia just did, and so it would be nice if we didn’t attack the witnesses, particularly making a decision about whether or not she’s a mother,” Garcia said.
