Georgia lawmaker Marjorie Taylor Greene prompted ridicule by suggesting that an earthquake in New York and New Jersey was a sign that America must “repent.” Homes and commercial buildings shook on the nation’s east coast on April 5, with tremors felt as far away as Philadelphia. Parts of Connecticut and upstate New York were also impacted. New York Governor Kathy Hochul said the 4.8 magnitude quake was the largest to hit the region in over a century.
Several aftershocks followed, but Governor Hochul reported minimal damage. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said there was no “major damage” to buildings, roads, or other infrastructure.
Immediately after the rare event, Taylor Greene took to Twitter to describe it as an act of God and a sign that the United States should seek His forgiveness. The Republican firebrand furthermore predicted “earthquakes, and eclipses, and many more to come.”
Twitter officials appear to mock Taylor Greene with an added community note stating that the total eclipse of April 8 was predicted hundreds of years ago and was not influenced by contemporary events.
Taylor Greene seemed unaffected by the mockery and posted another tweet calling it out. She wrote that despite being scoffed at for her view, her faith informed her that even though such events are predictable, God created them and employs them as signs.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump used the solar eclipse to emphasize the importance of this year’s Presidential election. In a new campaign video, a silhouette of the former President’s image moves toward the sun as a narrator states, “The most important moment in human history is taking place in 2024.”
Commentators questioned the ad’s wisdom, with one British reporter saying it implied Trump would plunge America into darkness. An eclipse occurs when the moon passes the sun, temporarily preventing its light from reaching the Earth. Because the moon’s shadow is not large enough to obscure all of the sun, only parts of the world witness the effect.
