By law and in technical terms, Marianna Pecora is a professional woman doing her duty as deputy communications officer for a political advocacy group called Voters of Tomorrow. In the eyes of most Americans, however, Pecora is a kid. a freshman in Congress, applying her skills, intellect, and voice to strengthen America’s democracy, something this country encourages and needs. And yesterday, Congresswoman and presumed adult, Marjorie Taylor Greene, appeared to intentionally kick Pecora while doing her job. Today, the political community is discussing the possible legal consequences for Taylor Greene. This writer cannot figure out why there aren’t louder calls to kick her out of Congress.
To some, the incident is that serious.
For those that haven’t seen the video. This is the video that appears to show it was intentional. There is another angle below but in this video the “kick” is at :40-50 in the 2:00 video:
.@RepMTG just told @santiagomayer_ to “go to another country” if he and @VotersTomorrow want to stop children dying in school.
She also kicked @MariannaPecora. pic.twitter.com/ierrATgeUb
— Brayden Karpinski (@Braykarp) September 15, 2022
And another angle:
Did Marjorie Taylor Greene step on a person and then tell them to “get out of the way?” pic.twitter.com/hoTCXualYh
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) September 15, 2022
From the Washington Post comes a description of the incident:
“Excuse me,” Greene says while at first appearing to step on demonstrator Marianna Pecora’s foot.
“Excuse me,” Greene says again, this time after appearing to intentionally draw back her foot and aim for Pecora’s leg.
“Oh my God,” Pecora, 18, is seen saying in the videos.
And Pecora’s description from the same story:
“It’s honestly, like, really disheartening to think that a bunch of kids can hold themselves with better composure than a sitting member of Congress,” Pecora said. “We’ve been sitting in meetings all week with both Democrats and Republicans. Nobody has been anything but respectful. Everybody has been just so incredibly attentive, and taken us seriously and had, like, really productive conversations with us. Except for Marjorie Taylor Greene.”
Mayer said he and Pecora have not yet discussed whether they will press charges against Greene. Pecora, he said, was physically okay after being kicked, if slightly shaken.
“It’s kind of just been chaos,” Mayer said. “She’s … just kind of shocked that a member of Congress would try to kick her.”
The excuse?
“You can’t block members of Congress,” Greene’s communications director, Nick Dyer, told Pecora, even though Greene was engaging her in conversation.
There are three possible consequences that MTG might face. Pecora could press criminal charges for assault and battery. A battery is an unwanted touching. Additionally, adults are not supposed to kick other adults. Pecora could have been seriously hurt had she been tripped. Criminal charges are on the table.
Pecora could file a civil suit for an intentional tort. An intentional tort doesn’t require big medical bills in order to win large awards. She could sue Taylor Greene for kicking her and embarrassing her.
And even though no one is talking about it yet, this writer believes that the GOP must address this. This is not normal. This cannot be normalized as just another incident of Marjorie being Marjorie. If a man kicked Pecora, there would likely be even more serious talk, even including possible expulsion from Congress. She should, at the very least, be sanctioned. The view from behind makes it clear enough that it was intentional that the response better not be, “You do not get in front of a member of Congress.” Moreover, the statement “You do not get in front of a member of Congress” could be entirely true, and yet the mistake doesn’t allow that member of Congress to kick someone who isn’t threatening a person in any way.
The “kick” is all abuzz on Twitter. It should be a bigger buzz in the GOP House Caucus.
@JasonMiciak believes a day without learning is a day not lived. He is a political writer, features writer, author, and attorney. He is a Canadian-born dual citizen who spent his teen and college years in the Pacific Northwest and has since lived in seven states. He now enjoys life as a single dad of a young girl, writing from the beaches of the Gulf Coast. He loves crafting his flower pots, cooking, and currently studies philosophy of science, religion, and non-math principles behind quantum mechanics and cosmology. Please feel free to contact for speaking engagements or any concerns.
