Marjorie Taylor Greene offered a withering assessment of President Donald Trump and his standing within the Republican Party during her first sit-down interview since announcing her intent to resign from Congress in January.
The Georgia Representative, who was once one of Trump’s most ardent and vocal allies before their public falling out, seemingly questioned the authenticity of the near-full support that the President has among Republicans in Congress during her Sunday night interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes. She argued that it would “shock” people to know that those same Republicans used to mock Trump behind his back.
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Claiming that the Republicans are now “terrified” to step out of line, lest they become the target of a “nasty” Truth Social post by Trump, she said: “I watched many of my colleagues go from making fun of him, making fun of how he talks, making fun of me constantly for supporting him, to when he won the primary in 2024 they all started… kissing his a-s and decided to put on a MAGA hat for the first time.”
Greene and Trump’s relationship fractured when the Georgia lawmaker refused to follow the President’s lead over the discourse pertaining to the release of the files connected to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Although Trump eventually pivoted his standpoint and signed a bill ordering the release of the Epstein files on Nov. 19, he had initially dismissed calls for the files to be made public, referring to the matter as a Democratic “hoax.”
Greene disagreed with Trump and aligned herself with a bipartisan effort to have the files released in-full. Her actions earned her a public rebuke from the President—the kind she says others are “terrified” to receive. Trump withdrew his support and endorsement for Greene, calling her a “traitor” and “disgrace” to the Republican Party. On Nov. 21, Greene announced that she would resign from Congress in January 2026. She explained her decision in a four-page letter, accompanied by a video address, during which she painted a bleak picture of the political landscape in D.C.
Addressing the relationship breakdown on Sunday, Greene said Trump was “extremely angry” over her decision to step out of line and sign the discharge petition to release the Epstein files.
“I fully believe that those women [survivors of Epstein] deserve everything they’re asking. They’re asking for all of it to come out; they deserve it. And he [Trump] was furious with me. … He said it was going to hurt people,” said Greene.
While the discord over the Epstein files is what eventually led to the much talked about fallout between Greene and Trump, fractures in their union had long started to form. Since Trump returned to the White House, Greene has notably—and publicly—opposed him on a number of high-profile issues, such as her vocal disapproval of the government shutdown and her plea for the President to step away from foreign policy and focus on “America first.”
Greene doubled down on her stance during her sit-down interview.
“For an America First president, the number one focus should have been domestic policy, and it wasn’t. And so, of course I was critical because those were my campaign promises. Once we fix everything here, then, fine, we’ll talk to the rest of the world,” she said.
Just last year, Greene—clad in the “Make America Great Again” hat she so often wore—interrupted former President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech amid heightened tensions between the Democrats and Republicans on border policy matters. But now she is reluctant to accept the MAGA label.
“MAGA is President Trump’s phrase. That’s his, his political policies. I call myself America First,” she said.
The White House rebuffed Greene’s commentary regarding Trump’s focus on foreign policy.
“As the architect of the MAGA movement, President Trump will always put America First. Every single day he’s working hard to continue fulfilling the many promises he made and he will continue delivering,” said spokesperson Abigail Jackson in a statement to TIME on Monday morning.
Greene also accused Trump of fueling the death threats she and her family have received since her public split from the President. According to Greene, one of the death threats sent to her son bore the subject line “Marjorie ‘Traitor’ Greene”—the President’s unflattering nickname for the Congresswoman.
“Those were death threats directly fueled by President Trump,” claimed Greene.
Greene isn’t the only Republican who has incurred the wrath of Trump in recent weeks.
Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who goes head-to-head with Trump on various issues, was the only GOP Senator to vote “no” on legislation to end the U.S. government shutdown. Republican Representatives Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Greg Steube of Florida also voted “no” when the bill reached them. Trump later referred to Paul and Massie as “lowlifes.”
Paul criticized Trump’s recent statements concerning Democrats, after the President called for the arrests of six Democrats who urged troops and the intelligence community to resist unlawful orders. Trump referred to them as “seditious” and said such behaviour is “punishable by death.”
Addressing Trump’s commentary during an appearance on CBS’ Face the Nation on Nov. 23, Paul referred to Trump’s remarks as “reckless, inappropriate, irresponsible.”
The Republican Senator has also been critical of Trump’s authorization of boat strikes in the Caribbean Sea, which the Trump Administration argues are necessary to curb the flow of narcotics into the U.S. Paul said he could see a potential “splintering and fracturing of the movement that has supported the President,” should the controversial strikes continue.
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