On Tuesday, the United States is expected to reach the milestone of 50 percent of American adults fully vaccinated against the global pandemic that's killed nearly 600 thousand Americans.
The development comes a little more than a week after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) loosened its guidelines to say that fully vaccinated people can forego masks and capacity limits in most situations, a welcome change from the safety measures that have defined the past year.
As businesses begin opening up again, some of them have opted to verify that their patrons are indeed fully vaccinated, thereby allowing patrons to dispense with their masks and reach the closest levels of "normal" recreation seen since the pandemic upended daily life last year.
Though President Joe Biden's administration has repeatedly emphasized these so-called "vaccine passports" won't be mandated by the federal government, Republicans in Congress have railed against vaccine verifications implemented by private businesses.
Republican Congresswoman and prominent conspiracy theorist Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia is the latest to do so, and even went so far as to liken the measures to the atrocities committed by Nazis in Germany ahead of World War II.
Vaccinated employees get a vaccination logo just like the Nazi\u2019s forced Jewish people to wear a gold star. \n\nVaccine passports & mask mandates create discrimination against unvaxxed people who trust their immune systems to a virus that is 99% survivable.https://www.wvlt.tv/2021/05/17/food-city-to-allow-fully-vaccinated-customers-employees-to-shop-without-masks/\u00a0\u2026— Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1621941729
Pretty soon it will be..\n\n\u201cWe only hire vaccinated people, show your vax papers.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe only admit vaccinated students, show your vax papers.\u201d\n\n\u201cThese bathrooms are only for vaccinated people, show your vax papers.\u201d\n\nThen..\n...scan your bar code or swipe your chip on your arm.— Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1621942288
Greene was doubling down on comments she made to the Christian Broadcasting Network, in which she said:
"You know, 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 Nancy Pelosi is talking about."
After those comments drew backlash, Greene said:
"I think any rational Jewish person didn't like what happened in Nazi Germany, and any rational Jewish person doesn't like what's happening with overbearing mask mandates and overbearing vaccine policies."
With her recent tweets predictably inciting controversy, Greene accused people of "twisting her words."
You are a liar. Stop twisting my words.\n\nIf you care about people NOT being discriminated against or being treated unequally then you would use your platform to be against vaccine passports. \n\nInstead you are all in for this sick Socialism just like good little state run media.https://twitter.com/jakesherman/status/1397155834946260996\u00a0\u2026— Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1621944081
I never compared it to the Holocaust, only the discrimination against Jews in early Nazi years.\nStop feeding into the left wing media attacks on me.\nEveryone should be concerned about the squads support for terrorists and discrimination against unvaxxed people.\nWhy aren\u2019t they?https://twitter.com/benshapiro/status/1397162152784502788\u00a0\u2026— Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@Marjorie Taylor Greene \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8) 1621945493
In one of his most forceful rebukes yet, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy of California—who's hesitated to criticize Greene in the past—denounced her comments.
Marjorie is wrong, and her intentional decision to compare the horrors of the Holocaust with wearing masks is appalling.\n\nLet me be clear: the House Republican Conference condemns this language.\n\nMy full statement:https://bit.ly/2TlwCtD— Kevin McCarthy (@Kevin McCarthy) 1621951536
He said in a statement:
"Marjorie is wrong, and her intentional decision to compare the horrors of the Holocaust with wearing masks is appalling. The Holocaust is the greatest atrocity committed in history. The fact that this needs to be stated today is deeply troubling."
McCarthy has faced pressure from his critics to discipline Greene's incessantly belligerent behavior in Congress. While McCarthy supported measures to oust Congresswoman Liz Cheney of Wyoming from her Republican leadership position for calling out Trump's election lies, he's done little to rebuke Greene's most appalling moments, including the harassment of her Democratic colleagues.
McCarthy defended Greene when House Democrats stripped her of her committee assignments after unearthed social media posts showed her express support for the execution of her now-colleagues and for deranged far-right conspiracy theories.
People want McCarthy to take action, not make statements.
But, you won\u2019t reprimand or expelled that woman. You don\u2019t actually care at all. So... just shut up.https://twitter.com/gopleader/status/1397192128598523911\u00a0\u2026— WearingMyHelmetOfSalvation (@WearingMyHelmetOfSalvation) 1621952956
Congrats to the Leader for...doing the absolute bare minimum.https://twitter.com/GOPLeader/status/1397192128598523911\u00a0\u2026— Pradheep J. Shanker (@Pradheep J. Shanker) 1621952883
But you not expelling her so you can keep this statement.https://twitter.com/GOPLeader/status/1397192128598523911\u00a0\u2026— Leslie Mac (@Leslie Mac) 1621952856
He should be moving to expel her. This is the most milquetoast response imaginable, and I am not surprised.https://twitter.com/GOPLeader/status/1397192128598523911\u00a0\u2026— Elizabeth C. McLaughlin (she/her) (@Elizabeth C. McLaughlin (she/her)) 1621952783
Words are nice, Kevin, but she needs to go. \n\nTell your House member to vote to expel @RepMTG from Congress here: https://bit.ly/ExpelGreene\u00a0\n\n#ExpelGreenehttps://twitter.com/GOPLeader/status/1397192128598523911\u00a0\u2026— Democratic Coalition (@Democratic Coalition) 1621952720
He was far from the only one to express disgust at her comments.
.@mtgreenee You are disgusting. A vile anti-Semite. Quadrupling down on this unconscionably offensive comparison demonstrates how diabolically evil you are... #MarjorieTaylorGreenehttps://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1397150992341377027\u00a0\u2026— Andy Ostroy (@Andy Ostroy) 1621952044
Every day that Marjorie Taylor Greene spews this vicious anti-Semitic bile, in the midst of an unprecedented wave of anti-Semitic violence, American Jews are in danger. \n\nEvery day that @GOP @HouseGOP @GOPLeader actively choose to not remove MTG, they are responsible.https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1397150992341377027\u00a0\u2026— Chester A. Arthur (@Chester A. Arthur) 1621951543
WTF is wrong with you? I think you need to pay a visit to the US Holocaust Museum.I\u2019d be happy to arrange.Then maybe going forward you wouldn\u2019t make anymore disgusting, ignorant and offensive tweets.If I\u2019m wrong and you\u2019re not ignorant about Holocaust..then you are disgusting.https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1397150992341377027\u00a0\u2026— (((Jeff Miller))) (@(((Jeff Miller)))) 1621944182
Please educate yourself so that you can realize how absolutely wrong and inappropriate it is to compare proof of vaccination with the 6million Jews who were exterminated by the Nazis. You\u2019re an embarrassment to yourself and the GOP.https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1397150992341377027\u00a0\u2026— Matt Brooks (@Matt Brooks) 1621946709
Greene's comments come as the nation sees an uptick in antisemitic attacks. Greene herself once presented the antisemitic conspiracy theory that the Rothschilds—a prominent Jewish billionaire family—were operating lasers that created forest fires.
