Marjorie Taylor Greene had a tense exchange with an Australian TV host on Tuesday after being asked whether she'll accept the 2024 presidential election result if Donald Trump loses.
The Context
Greene, a Georgia House Republican, is a prominent supporter of Trump's assertion that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him via fraud. This claim has been rejected repeatedly both in court and by independent election experts.
Trump's election manipulation claims led to large demonstrations following the 2020 election. On January 6, 2021 hundreds of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in a bid to prevent the election result being certified, sparking violence which saw 36-year-old Ashli Babbitt shot dead and dozens of police officers injured.
During an interview in May, Trump refused to say he would accept the 2024 election outcome if he doesn't believe it was "honest," sparking fears of renewed unrest.
What We Know
Appearing on Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) current affairs show 7.30 to discuss the release of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, Greene was also asked about November's upcoming presidential vote.
The host, Sarah Ferguson, questioned: "If it doesn't go your way, if Biden wins, will you accept the result?"
A visibly irritated Greene replied: "Again what does this have to do with Julian Assange? That's what we're supposed to be talking [about]."
Marjorie Taylor Greene throws a tantrum on Australian TV when asked if she'd accept the results of the election if Biden wins and asks if the interviewer is 'getting marching orders from the Democrat party.' pic.twitter.com/qedd5gnNjh
— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) June 27, 2024
The Republican continued: "What network is that? What is this ABC in Australia? Is she getting her marching orders from the Democrat Party? Is this what you decided to come up with today?"
Defending her question, Ferguson responded: "You're a prominent figure in U.S. politics. The first debate is tomorrow, the result of the election is on the minds not just of Americans but of the whole world so it's a natural point of curiosity."
The host then claimed they had "reached the end of the questions that you want to answer" and concluded the interview.
A clip of the exchange was posted on X by MeidasTouch, a self-styled "pro-democracy" media outlet, where it received more than 850 reposts and 175,000 views.
Trump has been indicted in two criminal cases based on claims he acted illegally whilst trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election outcome both nationwide and in the state of Georgia, specifically. He has pled not guilty to all charges and denies any wrongdoing.
On June 21, Biden edged ahead of Trump in the poll of polls compiled by aggregator website FiveThirtyEight, which put him on 40.6 percent against 40.5 percent for the GOP firebrand and 9.7 percent for independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Speaking to Newsweek, Heath Brown, an associate professor of public policy at City University of New York, described the current polling as "evenly split," giving Trump the advantage due to the Electoral College system.
He said: "I think all the polling for the last six months suggests the country has been and will remain evenly split.
"Slight ups and downs for either candidate in any given poll are largely washed out by the next set of polls."
The first of two presidential debates between Biden and Trump is due to take place on Thursday in Atlanta.
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About the writer
James Bickerton is a Newsweek U.S. News reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is covering U.S. politics and world ... Read more
