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Robert Garcia claims Marjorie Taylor Greene hugged Jan 6 defendants who she earlier claimed were 'BLM and Antifa' elements

Garcia alleged that Greene 'prayed' with the individuals accused of participating in the Capitol riot, and apologized to them

WASHINGTON, DC: Democrat Rep Robert Garcia has claimed that Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene engaged in a troubling display of camaraderie during a House Oversight Committee visit to a Washington, DC jail housing January 6 defendants.

Speaking to the left-wing media outlet Meidas Touch, Garcia alleged that Greene "hugged" and "prayed with them, apologized to them," treating the individuals accused of participating in the Capitol riot as if they were heroes.

"Marjorie Taylor Greene is leading this group, and the first thing she does is she greets them, hugs them, prays with them, and apologizes to them, and is treating them like heroes," Garcia fumed. "And I'm sitting there going, this is disgusting. These people attacked our government. They tried to overthrow our government."

Social media backlash against Marjorie Taylor Greene

The claim quickly gained traction on social media, where critics of Greene excoriated her in light of Garcia's recollections.

"Weird way to treat the people she said were Antifa and BLM," one posted on X.

"That's providing aid & comfort to insurrectionists," another added.

"How many times does MTG have to show us that she’s a traitor?" someone else alleged.

"She should be in there with them Right now," another insisted. 

Conflicting narratives across the political aisle

NBC News had previously reported on the visit in March, highlighting the conflicting narratives presented by members of the House Oversight Committee. While Rep Greene alleged the Jan 8 defendants were subject to constitutional violations and mistreatment, her Democratic counterparts contended that they were being treated fairly with nothing extraordinary.

After the tour, Rep Greene, who spearheaded the visit, told reporters that the defendants' "due process rights are being violated. And they have been mistreated and treated as political prisoners." Fellow Republicans, including Reps Byron Donalds, Anna Paulina Luna, and Mike Collins, supported Greene's perspective.

However, Democrats on the tour, such as Rep Jasmine Crockett and Rep Robert Garcia, refuted these characterizations.

Crockett, a former public defender, described the visit as “political theater,” adding that she “didn’t see anything that was alarming.” Meanwhile, Garcia told reporters that the defendants were “being treated very fairly, appropriately" and that Republicans were “treating these insurrectionists like they’re pseudo-celebrities.”

Greene had previously visited the jail in November 2021. She reportedly worked with House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., to organize the trip for members of Congress.

The controversy deepened as details emerged about interactions between other Republican representatives and individuals connected to the January 6 events.

GOP Rep Lauren Boebert of Colorado was seen exchanging a hug with Micki Witthoeft, the mother of Ashli Babbitt, a rioter shot by police during the Capitol breach.

At the time of the visit, the Washington Corrections Department held 20 people charged in connection with the January 6 riot, according to an analysis by Just Security.

Out of approximately 1,000 arrests related to the events, nine of the 20 had been convicted or pleaded guilty, with only three defendants at the DC jail not charged with physically assaulting law enforcement officers during the Capitol attack.