Greene Pulls Another Procedural Delay Stunt, Further Delaying COVID Relief Vote

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 5: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) speaks during a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol on February 5, 2021 in Washington, DC. The House voted 230 to 199 on Friday evening to remove Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) from committee assignments over her remarks about QAnon and other conspiracy theories. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 5: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) speaks during a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol on February 5, 2021 in Washington, DC. The House voted 230 to 199 on Friday evening to remove ... WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 5: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) speaks during a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol on February 5, 2021 in Washington, DC. The House voted 230 to 199 on Friday evening to remove Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) from committee assignments over her remarks about QAnon and other conspiracy theories. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) MORE LESS
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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) forced a vote on a motion to adjourn Wednesday morning only minutes after the House had begun the session, delaying the final vote on the COVID-19 relief package.

The motion failed, with over 40 Republicans voting against adjourning. The $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package is expected to pass this afternoon, though the motion delayed its passage.

“I think it’s unconscionable that they are doing everything they can to try to again delay getting aid to people, including their constituents who are in desperate need,” Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) told reporters Wednesday morning, while the House voted on Greene’s motion.

Greene has favored forcing a vote to adjourn in recent weeks, a time-consuming process that grinds the chamber to a halt. It also takes members from their committee work, though Greene was stripped from both of her committee positions in February.

A ruffled Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI) told reporters Wednesday that he’d propose a rule that only members of committees can force a motion to adjourn. “I’m dead serious,” he said.

Even Greene’s fellow House Republicans have started complaining — “it’s a pain in the ass,” Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) told CNN — and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) reportedly warned the Republican conference recently that such wrench-throwing must have some strategy behind it. 

Greene’s delay tactics Wednesday mirror those used by her GOP Senate peers, who forced a reading of the entire 628-page COVID-19 relief package and many amendment votes to slow the process.

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