Colorado Representative Lauren Boebert, who has expressed support for QAnon conspiracy theories in the past, recently complained to The Associated Press (AP) about being asked to explain her colleague Marjorie Taylor Greene's absurd beliefs.
Boebert and Greene are often lumped together because of their common alt-right beliefs. It would seem Boebert is apparently quite tired of this association.
She told AP:
"I have been asked to explain MTG’s beliefs on Jewish space lasers, on why she showed up to a White supremacist conference. ... I’m just not going to go there"
"She wants to say all these things and seem unhinged on Twitter, so be it."
People were surprised to see the one time allies—who infamously heckled Biden’s State of the Union side by side—lobbing barbs at each other.
This isn't the only point of contention between the two lawmakers.
California Representative Kevin McCarthy's bid to become Speaker of the House was another recent bit of division for them.
While Greene staunchly supported the idea of McCarthy as Speaker, Boebert resoundingly did not.
During the Turning Point USA conference in Phoenix, Arizona in December, Boebert likewise criticized Greene's tendency to parrot especially absurd conspiracy theories and distanced herself from Greene's ideology.
She said:
"I’ve been aligned with Marjorie and accused of believing a lot of the things that she believes in. I don’t believe in this just like I don’t believe in ... Jewish space lasers"
This led to Greene retaliating via Twitter, noting Boebert won reelection quite narrowly in 2022.
"I’ve supported and donated to Lauren Boebert. President Trump has supported and donated to Lauren Boebert. Kevin McCarthy has supported and donated to Lauren Boebert. She just barely came through by 500 votes."
She further complained about Boebert's apparent lack of support for her and other far-right Republicans, calling her "childish."
"She gladly takes our $$ but when she’s been asked: Lauren refuses to endorse President Trump, she refuses to support Kevin McCarthy, and she childishly threw me under the bus for a cheap sound bite."
Boebert is apparently trying to distance herself from the more extreme alt-right side of the Republican party.
She told CBS Colorado in an interview last month that she plans to tone down the extreme rhetoric due to feedback from her constituents—likely due to the very narrow margin by which she kept her House seat.
She said:
"I think the big takeaway from what I’ve seen and from what I’ve heard from constituents is I’m right on the policies, but everyone is ready for Washington, D.C., to kind of take the temperature down a notch. And I’m very excited and optimistic that we have the opportunity to do that now."
This is a huge shift from the Boebert of her first term, where she espoused extremist rhetoric about multiple topics including gun rights, Christian religious freedom and a near sycophantic support of former President Donald Trump.
@joehas/X