(Photo : Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 17: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) answers questions in front of the House steps while House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy holds a press conference November 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. McCarthy and other members of the Republican caucus spoke on U.S. President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda as his Build Back Better initiative nears a vote in the House.
Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene said she wanted to give Kyle Rittenhouse, who was recently acquitted of homicide charges after fatally shooting two men, a congressional gold medal with the introduction of a new bill.
A jury last week acquitted Rittenhouse, who was facing life in prison, of all charges in the trial for the murder of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber. The teenager quickly became a hit among Republican lawmakers who have offered him internships.
Congressional Gold Medal
Rittenhouse recently traveled to Mar-a-Lago and met with former United States President Donald Trump, who called him a "nice young man." He also did an interview with Tucker Carlson, where he said that he was a supporter of the BLM movement, arguing that his case was not about racism.
Greene's proposal is a nomination for the legislative branch's highest honor and comes after several officials, including Florida Republican Representative, Matt Gaetz, offered him work. The wording of Greene's bill argues that the teenager "protected the community of Kenosha, Wisconsin" when he traveled to the area carrying a rifle to allegedly help in controlling the violent protests, Independent reported.
The congressional gold medal is the highest award that Congress can give to people who have done distinguished achievements. Individuals who received the award in the past include former President George Washington, civil rights activists Rosa Parks, and South African leader Nelson Mandela.
Despite the bill, Greene's plan to award Rittenhouse with the congressional gold medal would likely not be passed due to the House and Senate being controlled primarily by Democrats. Prior to the proposal, the congresswoman also defended the teenager in a Twitter post on Monday where she criticized former attorney Lin Wood for allegedly mistreating Rittenhouse. "Lin should go to jail for what he did to Kyle," said Greene in the social media post, Business Insider reported.
Despite Congress and United States President Joe Biden defended the jury's verdict in Rittenhouse's trial, the Democratic leader still said that the decision made him, and many other Americans, "angry and concerned."
Offers of Internships
During the case, Rittenhouse faced charges of homicide, attempted homicide, and reckless endangerment. The trial bore out of his fatal shooting of the men in Kenosha and the injury of a third man. The jury made the verdict, saying that the teenager acted out of self-defense during the incident in Kenosha, Wisconsin in 2020.
After the teen's acquittal last week, many Republican lawmakers celebrated the not guilty verdict. However, Rittenhouse's defense lawyer, Mark Richard, criticized lawmakers who offered his client an internship of only trying to take advantage of the case, calling the offers "disgusting."
"There's a lot of people trying to profit on this, and I don't think people should. They're raising money on it, and you have all these Republican congressmen saying, 'Come work for me.' They want to trade on his celebrity, and I think it's disgusting," said Richards, the New York Post reported.
A spokesman for Gaetz responded to Greene's proposed bill by saying it could make Rittenhosue too confident during the teenager's internship with the Republican's office.
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