Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has once more thrown herself on the middle of controversy over her embrace of claims that the federal government and people are “controlling” the extreme climate as Hurricane Milton barrels towards Florida.
Within the wake of widespread devastation from Hurricane Helene, the Georgia Republican has shared varied conspiracy theories on-line suggesting the federal government is in charge of the climate and might summon hurricanes because of this.
On this case, her social media posts have additionally come amid elevated worries that misinformation about Hurricane Milton and its risks may lead folks to make poor selections about holding themselves secure.
A few of Greene’s Republican colleagues have been fast to name her out for sharing the climate claims, whereas President Biden referenced her Wednesday in remarks about misinformation forward of Hurricane Milton’s anticipated landfall in Florida.
Greene first posted in regards to the hurricanes on Oct. 3, when she shared a picture of Helene superimposed on a map of the 2020 election outcomes. The map was made by influencer Matt Wallace, who claimed the storm “seemed to almost methodically miss the bluest parts” of “crucial swing states, while simultaneously ravaging the red parts.”
Greene didn’t connect textual content to her personal submit of the map, although some customers instructed she was implying the hurricane was set to particularly hit Republican-leaning counties forward of the November election.
Later that day, Greene wrote on the social platform X, “Yes, they can control the weather. It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.”
A group observe, supposed so as to add context to posts on X, was connected to Greene’s submit. It states climate manipulation is “possible at small scales” however climate patterns “in general are naturally occurring and cannot be ‘controlled.’”
“Hurricanes and other large storms cannot be created artificially with modern technology,” the observe added, adopted by a listing of articles refuting the claims.
Two days later, Greene shared a 9-year-old CBS Information clip through which a scientist was requested about the potential for utilizing lasers to regulate the climate. The scientist famous it was nonetheless experimental and solely completed in a lab on the time.
Greene’s amplification of this principle comes amid a wider flood of misinformation circulating on social media in regards to the hurricanes and the federal government response. A sequence of elected officers on either side of the aisle have sounded the alarm over the flurry of rumors and how it’s complicating an already troublesome restoration course of.
Florida Republican Rep. Carlos Gimenez on Wednesday instructed Greene ought to have her “head examined” following her posts.
“Humans cannot create or control hurricanes,” Gimenez posted on X as Hurricane Milton bore down on his dwelling state. “Anyone who thinks they can, needs to have their head examined.”
Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards (N.C.), whose district consists of the Asheville space hit closely by Helene, launched an eight-bullet listing Tuesday making an attempt to refute the rumors about Helene and the federal government’s response.
He didn’t title Greene immediately, however emphasised Helene was “NOT geoengineered by the government.”
“Nobody can control the weather,” Edwards stated, including that the present geoengineering know-how can mitigate some destructive penalties, “however it can’t be used to create or manipulate hurricanes.”
Biden additionally ripped Greene, together with former President Trump, for spreading what he described “irresponsible” and “beyond ridiculous” falsehoods over excessive climate.
“Now the claims are getting even more bizarre. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a congresswoman from Georgia, is now saying the federal government is literally controlling the weather. We’re controlling the weather,” Biden stated as he obtained a briefing on Hurricane Milton. “It’s beyond ridiculous. It’s got to stop. Moments like this, there are no red or blue states.”
These claims, in accordance with Biden, are “undermining confidence” within the rescue and restoration efforts within the wake of Helene, which slammed Florida, Georgia and North Carolina late final month.
Amid the scrutiny Wednesday, Greene claimed the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) experiences on climate modification tasks again her principle.
“Everyone keeps asking, ‘who is they?’ Well, some of them are listed on NOAA, as well as most of the ways weather can be modified,” she wrote on X.
“Weather modification” refers to any exercise supposed to provide “artificial changes in the composition, behavior, or dynamics of the atmosphere.” Firms who perform this exercise are required by regulation to report it to NOAA, which retains a public database of those tasks.
The backlash dealing with Greene is harking back to her previous amplification of conspiracy theories, together with a separate one in regards to the climate.
Greene in 2018 instructed a “laser beam or light beam” from “space solar generators” might have been behind the devastating wildfires in California, and she or he talked about “Rothschild Inc.” She later stated she didn’t know the Rothschilds have been on the middle of antisemitic conspiracy theories.
Throughout her first time period in 2021, she confronted criticism for a string of false statements and flirtations with conspiracy theories, together with an embrace of the QAnon conspiracy principle.
Home Democrats finally stripped Greene’s committee assignments that 12 months, arguing on the time she gave up the appropriate to these seats by means of her endorsement of conspiracy theories, racist dogma and violence in opposition to Democratic politics.
Hours forward of this vote, Greene delivered a speech on the Home flooring the place she defended her flirtation with the world of on-line conspiracy theories however emphasised she extra just lately understood the falsities and risks of these narratives.
Greene defined how she’d “stumbled across” QAnon in late 2017 and commenced posting about it on Fb whereas she was “upset about things and didn’t trust the government.” Later in 2018, Greene stated, “when I started finding misinformation, lies, things that were not true in these QAnon posts, I stopped believing it.”
In doing so, she additionally disavowed earlier help for a number of conspiracy theories, declaring a perception that college shootings are “absolutely real” and that 9/11 “absolutely happened.”
