How Greene Went From Trump Friend to Foe

BY OLIVIA BEAVERS AND ALEX LEARY

“This one—I never, ever want to have her as my enemy: Marjorie Taylor Greene,” said President Trump at a Georgia rally in the final weeks of the 2020 campaign.

Five years later, Trump is putting those words to the test.

Once one of Trump’s most strident MAGA allies, Greene is now arguing the president is out of touch with his political base on the economy, foreign policy and the Jeffrey Epstein case, while painting herself as unapologetically “America First.” That has made the Georgia congresswoman, 51 years old, persona non grata with the man she fiercely defended for years— and raises the question of whether there is room for both of them in the MAGA movement.

The public drama has been ramping up for weeks but peaked in recent days. Trump is publicly attacking her as a “ranting lunatic,” dubbing her “Marjorie Traitor Greene.” He not only unendorsed Greene but also said he would back a primary challenger to run against her in 2026.

‘I forgive him’

Trump claims Greene began to criticize him after he dissuaded her from running for the Senate, citing polling that showed she was unlikely to win. Greene disputes that and says Trump was trying to make an example out of her for calling for the release of the Justice Department’s Epstein- related files and over her breaks with the president on Israel and the economy.

“I forgive him and I will pray for him to return to his original MAGA promises,” she said in a social-media post on Saturday. At a press conference Tuesday morning with Epstein survivors at the Capitol, Greene said the fight over releasing the files “has ripped MAGA apart.”

It is uncharted territory for Greene, a partisan bombthrower and sharp-elbowed colleague who built her name as one of Trump’s loyal defenders after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. When Greene said she received death threats because of Trump’s comments, the president coldly dismissed her concerns. “I don’t think her life is in danger. Frankly, I don’t think anybody cares about her,” Trump said. He has been in no mood for reconciling, advisers close to him said, and feels betrayed.

In recent weeks, Trump grew increasingly annoyed at Greene over her push to release the Epstein files, which he calls a Democratic effort to hurt Republicans. She was one of only four Republicans to sign a petition to force the matter, and it reached its 218th signature last week, forcing a vote. That threatened to embarrass Trump because of expected widespread GOP defections, and he reversed himself Sunday night and said Republicans should support it. Congress overwhelmingly approved legislation Tuesday mandating the disclosures of the Epstein files.

Rhetoric shift

Greene’s split with Trump has also come with a distinct softening in her public persona and overt outreach to non-MAGA audiences. She denies that she has changed, saying that she is still representing the needs of her Rome, Ga., area constituents. But colleagues, the White House and other political observers feel the change is clear, from her tone to her rhetoric.

In a surreal moment for Greene, the mostly liberal hosts of “The View” daytime talk show praised her as she began hammering the message of affordability and the need for Republicans to craft a healthcare plan. “I’m sitting here just stumped…because you are a very different person than I thought,” said View cohost Sunny Hostin.

Democrats aren’t sure what to make of it. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D., Md.) joked to a crowd in Florida that the Democrats need a big tent coalition. “I say this is a party that’s got room for Marjorie Taylor Greene if she wants to come over!” he said.

Some Republicans said she made a miscalculation. “She was a rising star, but perhaps got too close to the sun,” said Rep. Ryan Zinke (R., Mont.).

After Greene’s election in 2020, she became a nationally known figure, embodying the hard-charging and unvarnished brand of politics Trump brought to Washington. She built her national profile using heated and conspiratorial political rhetoric.

One Facebook post about fires in California became known as the “Jewish space laser” conspiracy. She compared Covid-19 mandates, such as mask requirements, to Nazi atrocities. She also was among the most vocal Trump allies pushing his false “stop the steal” election-fraud claims.

When Greene first entered Congress, a Democratic-led effort to strip her of committee assignments over her comments passed with some Republican support. She scrapped with colleagues ranging from GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert on the right to Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett on the left.

Asked on CNN on Sunday about her past incendiary remarks, Greene responded: “I would like to say, humbly, I’m sorry for taking part in the toxic politics. It’s very bad for our country.”