Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene made headlines on Wednesday for statements about climate change mitigation programs during a session in Congress.
The MAGA Representative—who previously expressed disbelief in man-made climate change—offered a quip that people during the ice age didn't have to pay taxes to combat it.
According to NOAA, the last ice age ended approximately 11,000 years ago—or around 9,000 B.C..
Greene further attacked the federal government's climate policies, saying there was no reason to allow the country's borders to open up and let people in while also funding foreign countries to combat climate change.
She suggested billions or even trillions of dollars were being spent simply because some countries "don't like the climate change."
You can hear what Greene said in the video below.
Greene said:
“People are not affecting climate change."
"You’re not going to tell me that back in the ice age, how much taxes did people pay, and how many changes did governments make to melt the ice?"
"The climate is going to continue to change.”
“And there is no reason to just open up our borders and allow everyone in and continue to funnel over $50 billion or however many billions of dollars or trillions of dollars to foreign countries all over the world simply because they don’t like the climate change.”
Greene's claims run counter to the scientific consensus stating human beings are largely responsible for anthropogenic climate change, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels—like coal, oil and natural gas—which produces heat-trapping gases.
Footage of her remarks went viral.
Her remarks have been met with criticism and disbelief.
Many environmental advocates accused her of disregarding scientific evidence and taking a dangerous stance on climate policy.
This isn't the first time Greene has made an oddball remark drawing a connection between taxes, climate change and the last ice age.
During a town hall in Murray County, Georgia in 2021, Greene questioned "how much money" people spent during the ice age "to warm up the earth." Greene denied the realities of anthropogenic climate change, stressing instead that humans "live on a ball that rotates around the sun, that flies through the universe, and maybe our climate just changes.”
She subsequently took an opportunity to attack New York Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for introducing the Green New Deal framework, saying that stopping the use of coal and oil "would make sense" to Ocasio-Cortez because she is "from New York," a city she has derided as being full of "coastal elites" with little knowledge of "real America."
