One morning in March, Lil Miss Hot Mess woke up to discover that a sitting member of Congress had called her a monster.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) had used her as a prop to justify the GOP’s nonsensical war on PBS. According to the MAGA congresswoman, the Public Broadcasting Service, known for beloved children’s shows like Sesame Street and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, had become a “radical left-wing echo chamber” focused on “grooming and sexualizing children.”

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During her committee hearing on defunding the network, Greene aired a video of the Drag Story Hour icon reading an excerpt from her children’s book, The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish. Greene called it “repulsive” and called Lil Miss Hot Mess a “child predator.”

“The things that she said about me were especially nasty, and I think in any other context would have been considered a form of defamation or slander,” Lil Miss Hot Mess told LGBTQ Nation.

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"The hips go swish, swish, swish? … that's repulsive" — Marge Green is big mad

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) March 26, 2025 at 11:30 AM

But this was far from the veteran performer’s first time at the rodeo of hate. It wasn’t even the first time she’d been dangled as public bait by a federal politician. And like every other time before, she has used the moment as fuel to propel herself forward. After all, she emphasized, Republicans should know that it takes a lot more than name-calling to bring down a drag queen.

“We’re larger than life and we’re not going to back down,” she said.

“In some ways, the art of drag is forged through the kinds of oppression that we’ve experienced historically, and being able to find ways to reclaim the slurs that are used against us and to find joy and humor in the moments of sadness and pain. We’re really good at it.”

Besides, she added, it’s time for America to rediscover its backbone.

“The country as a whole is in a moment where we have to relearn what it means to stand up to bullies,” she said.

A quick glance at her social media accounts confirms she has a knack for taking back power from those seeking to belittle her. Her posts mock the hate and the slurs and the ignorance. She jokes about the honor of being called out by hate groups and Fox News. She protests, speaks out, and encourages others to do the same.

And perhaps most importantly, she radiates joy.

Seriously, while wear it as a badge of courage to be listed among such cultural icons as Elmo, the lows this administration will go to try to erase LGBTQ+, BIPOC, immigrants, Muslims, disabled, and other marginalized people is disgusting. Get a new hobby!

— Lil Miss Hot Mess (@lilmisshotmess.bsky.social) April 16, 2025 at 7:51 PM

After Greene’s stunt, Lil Miss Hot Mess refused to let her have the last word. She responded with a biting essay in HuffPost. “What is ironic about Greene’s attacks is that while she accuses public media, children’s authors and drag storytellers like myself of ‘brainwashing’ children, it is Greene who wants to control minds through censorship,” she wrote. “But drag can be an antidote. And that’s exactly why drag performers belong in public education and media.”