Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene has a history of spreading far-right conspiracy theories, but the Georgia Republican was shocked to find herself in the middle of a conspiracy theory about the identity of the January 5, 2021, pipe bomber.
Greene was stripped of her committee assignments in 2021 after mentioning conspiracy theories such as questioning whether deadly school shootings had been staged and whether a plane really hit the Pentagon on 9/11. Greene also offered a theory about the source of California wildfires, but now she is condemning those spreading a conspiracy theory at her expense.
In a May 30 episode of Greene's podcast, MTG Battleground, she bashed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) for their arrests of people involved in the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot while struggling to identify the mysterious figure who placed pipe bombs outside of the Democratic National Committee and Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington the night before the riot.
The pipe bombs never detonated, and as federal agencies have failed to identify the suspect, amateur sleuths have concocted their own theories about the bomber's identity.
The theory most surprising to Greene is that she was the hooded figure who placed the pipe bombs. Greene called the theory "ridiculous."
"Democrats and a bunch of Twitter trolls have shared everywhere...accusing me of being the pipe bomber, which I have found absolutely shocking, ridiculous, and I really feel sorry for anyone who would actually believe that because that's a horrible thing to think or believe about me, and it's absolutely not true," Greene said, adding that conspiracy theories about her have been circulating for years.
Newsweek reached out to Greene's press team by email for comment.
She then shared a handful of videos and pictures accusing her of being the pipe bomber, with posts spreading the theory on TikTok amassing more than 30 million views.
Greene said that every day she sees posts regarding the theory that she is the pipe bomber. She said some people comment on her social media posts regarding the theory, as well.
"I cannot believe so many people would fall for such a horrible lie," she said.
And despite her history with conspiracy theories, Greene claimed she didn't take part in them.
"I'm not the conspiracy theorist, you are," she said, addressing the people who were sharing the theory about her being the pipe bomber.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Anna Skinner is a Newsweek senior reporter based in Indianapolis. Her focus is reporting on the climate, environment and weather ... Read more
