Their influence, or the fear of crossing them, has been apparent when Democrats have sought to punish them for violent or extremist rhetoric, with almost the entire Republican conference rallying to their side.
When the House voted to strip Greene of her committee assignments in February, only 11 Republicans voted with the Democrats even as some GOP members made clear they rejected her past violent and conspiratorial comments. This past week that number fell to two on a resolution to censure Gosar and kick him off his committees, and this time most members focused their public remarks on attacking Democrats rather than addressing Gosar’s actions.
“I think I have the support nationally, and it’s because I speak what regular people say. I speak what Republicans say at home, and you know, at dinner. I’m saying what they say in their breakfast meetings before work,” Greene said. “I’m saying what they’re saying at church and saying what they’re saying in their Bible studies. I’m saying what these parents are saying, when they’re going to their school boards.”
The Trump loyalists’ influence reflects the nature of today’s Republican Party, which treats the MAGA squad as celebrities — not the fringe they may have represented in the party of Reagan, the Bushes or McCain.