Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene has shredded a warning letter she received for not wearing a mask on the floor of the House of Representatives in protest against the requirement.
The Republican who represents Georgia's 14th congressional district posted a video to her Twitter account on Wednesday showing her putting the letter through a shredder.
Greene was one of seven GOP members of the House who received warning letters for a first offense of not wearing a mask in the House chamber, following their involvement in a protest against the rule on Tuesday.
"This is what I think of Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi's letter," Greene tweeted, adding the hashtag #FreeYourFace.
"You can't discriminate against people simply because they won't wear a mask," Greene said in the video.
"And today I refused to wear a mask on the House floor and I received a warning from Speaker Pelosi that lists the fines if I continue to refuse to wear a mask."
"Well, here's what I think of your warning," Greene said before shredding the letter.
This is what I think of Speaker Pelosi’s letter. #FreeYourFace pic.twitter.com/9uujzmtCCP
— Marjorie Taylor Greene 🇺🇸 (@mtgreenee) May 19, 2021
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued updated guidance on mask-wearing. The agency advised that fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks in most indoor and outdoor settings.
However, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has not changed a rule requiring masks on the House floor. Around 25 percent of members of Congress have not been vaccinated, according to an estimate made by Pelosi as reported by The Washington Post on April 29.
Greene has said she will not be vaccinated, according to The Washington Post. There is no public record of lawmakers who have received the COVID-19 vaccine.
The warning letter came after a protest by a group of Republicans against the mask-wearing rule on Tuesday. Three GOP members of the House received $500 fines for their refusal to wear masks because it was their second offense. They were Representatives Brian Mast of Florida, Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa and Beth Van Duyne of Texas.
The protest was organized by Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky, according to NBC News. He received a warning.
"We've had enough. We are refusing to wear our masks on the floor during this vote in spite of Pelosi's threat to take $500 from each of us. Her rule is not based on science," Massie tweeted on Tuesday.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy introduced a resolution on Wednesday that would have allowed members of Congress to go without masks on the House floor but it was defeated by a vote of 218 to 210.
Newsweek has contacted Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and Speaker Nancy Pelosi for comment.
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