Wearing a bright red MAGA hat on the floor of the U.S. House before President Joe Biden’s State of the Union, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), as expected, made a scene—and she broke the rules in the process.
According to official House rules, House buildings are considered official government resources. “Accordingly, as a general rule, they may not be used for the conduct of campaign or political activities,” the House rules say.
But Greene’s “Make America Great Again” hat could be construed as campaigning activities.
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Greene, who has made a scene at every one of Biden’s State of the Union addresses, tried to have a direct conversation with Biden as the president entered the House chamber Thursday night. She could be seen telling Biden to “say her name,” an apparent reference to Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student who was allegedly murdered by an undocumented immigrant.
Biden didn’t take the bait, and Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI) could be seen trying to box Greene out from getting too close to Biden.
But later during Biden’s address, Greene—still wearing her MAGA hat—provoked Biden to mention Riley. Biden ended up holding up a Laken Riley button and said that she was killed by “an illegal,” a controversial and dehumanizing term that Democrats usually avoid.
While Greene got what she wanted, she may face repercussions for her sartorial decision.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) quickly tweeted Thursday night that Greene was “in direct violation of the rules of the House by wearing campaign insignia on the House floor,” and she’s likely to face an ethics complaint—even if it won’t go anywhere under a House controlled by Republicans.
Greene responded to Raskin’s complaint by saying Biden was in “direct violation” of his duty to protect the U.S.-Mexico border.
