The story was mercifully summed up by New York Magazine’s Jonathan Chait as Greene theorizing about a “secret Jewish space laser,” and a meme was born. To be clear, this is not the birth of Greene’s conspiratorial reputation. This idea was already established by her support of QAnon and promotion of alternative theories about the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and multiple mass shootings. The “Jewish Space Laser” was just the most accessible oddity.
After Republicans won the House majority in 2022, Greene emerged as an unlikely ally to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). As her leadership changed, she went from being an outcast to a supporter of the establishment, and at times becoming a liaison between the far right wing of the Republican conference and the leadership.She is now the one to be taken away. seriously.
Then a British journalist approaching the green Greene was furious after bringing up the topic of conspiracy theories at an event last month.
“Tell me about the Jewish space laser,” Emily Maitlis asked.
“Why aren’t you talking about Jewish space lasers?” Green responded angrily. Then she suggested that Mr. Maitlis do something else that could be left to the imagination.
But less than a month later, Greene on Wednesday introduced amendments to the bill focused on foreign aid.
“With the funds made available by this act, the necessary amounts shall be used for the development of space laser technology on the southwest border,” the amendment reads.
Hahaha! get it? We have fun joking about space lasers. The bill presupposes the provision of military aid to Israel.
(It’s not a big deal, but it’s worth noting that the original technology cited by Greene in 2018 as the source of “space lasers” was not a laser, but instead a directed radio-frequency output.)
I’m assuming the intent here is to be light-hearted and not just one more return to borders and immigration. (Mr. Greene’s office did not immediately respond to a request for clarification.) But it’s much better to poke fun at past eccentricities when you haven’t done the same behavior in question. go.
Mr. Greene, for example, passionately opposes further aid to Ukraine to protect it from Russian invaders. She has long argued, right after the Russian invasion, that Ukraine should just roll over. The long game, she suggested in March 2022, was for Americans to go to ground combat and protect the fictitious economic interests of powerful non-MAGA political actors.
Although there is no mention of how the Rothschilds were involved, the ideological framework was discernible.
Recently, she claimed that In a social media post, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) called it “anti-Semitic” to condition aid to Israel on “funding the Ukrainian Nazis.” intertwined with her persistent attacks in recent weeks on But the “Nazis of Ukraine” itself is not only false, it is also a central element of Russian misinformation about the invasion.
Nor is her fantasy limited to foreign aid.When a container ship crashed into a bridge in Baltimore late last month, Greene immediately responded. amplified They claim that something sinister may be afoot.When a criminal investigation into the accident was announced, she said: claimed Apparently, they mistakenly believed that the focus of the investigation was negligence rather than intent.
The fact that anyone can be elected to Congress is a feature of American democracy, not a flaw. You don’t have to be a lawyer. You do not need to have first served at the local or state level. But historically, seriousness and consideration of other points of view have been expected, if not a willingness to compromise.
Greene has never taken national politics seriously. Instead, she views her decision-making through the same lens she always has, primarily influenced by fringe theories and with immense confidence in her own ability to put the pieces together. With this in mind, it is difficult to view the “space laser” amendment as a humorous act of subversion. It landed flat, as if Donald Trump was trying to be self-deprecating about his efforts at reversal. Roe vs. Wade.
In fact, it’s not clear whether Greene’s proposed amendment is a joke at all.
