- Marjorie Taylor Greene on Monday voted against mourning the 50,000 dead in the Turkey-Syria earthquake.
- She and her GOP colleague Thomas Massie were the two lawmakers who voted no on the matter.
- The resolution also honored humanitarian aid workers who’ve helped earthquake victims.
Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene was one of two House Republicans who voted against mourning the 50,000 people killed in the deadly earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.
Greene and her GOP colleague, Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, were the two nays on a House resolution on the Turkey-Syria earthquakes. The bill, H.R. 132, was introduced by South Carolina Republican congressman Rep. Joe Wilson on February 17.
According to the bill’s summary, the House resolution “mourns the loss of life” in Turkey and Syria after the quakes.
“The resolution also (1) applauds the work of humanitarian aid and rescue workers on the ground; and (2) condemns the efforts by the Assad regime of Syria to exploit the disaster to evade international pressure and accountability, including by preventing the United Nations from providing assistance through border crossings between Turkey and Syria,” the summary reads.
Greene and Massie were the two nays in the roll call vote held on February 27. Even her colleagues, Reps. Lauren Boebert and Matt Gaetz — who are known for their controversial views — voted yes. The bill passed 414 to 2.
More than 50,000 people were killed after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Turkey and Syria on February 6. Over 160,000 buildings collapsed or were severely damaged in the disaster, Reuters reported. The UNDP further estimates that more than 1.5 million people have lost their homes in the quake.
Greene has not made many public statements on the earthquake but did tweet about the disaster.
“Praying for Turkey and other countries suffering through deadly earthquakes. Thousands are feared dead,” the congresswoman tweeted on February 6.
It’s unclear why Greene chose to vote against the bill, but it might have something to do with Wilson’s rationale for introducing the resolution in the first place.
Wilson said in Congress on Monday that the congressional bill was a message to the “war criminal Putin” that delaying humanitarian aid to the region is “despicable.” Wilson’s speech referenced a diplomatic row in February when the UN’s aid to Syria was held up by Russia.
Greene has taken a fairly pro-Russia stance on the Ukraine war. On Monday, she tweeted that it’s “unconstitutional” for President Joe Biden to help Ukraine because it is “not a NATO ally nor a democracy.” In April 2022, Greene was among the six GOP House members who opposed a bill meant to preserve evidence of war crimes by Russia.
Representatives for Greene and Massie did not immediately respond to Insider’s requests for comment.
