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Marjorie Taylor Greene exits Congress after dramatic split with Trump
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), once one of Donald Trump's most vocal allies in Congress, will leave office next month after a stunning public rupture with the former president-who now calls her a "traitor." The final break followed months of escalating disagreements over policy, strategy, and the direction of the MAGA movement she once championed.
The rise: From activist to Trump's firebrand ally
Greene entered Congress in January 2021, days before the Capitol riot, as a staunch defender of Trump's baseless claims that the 2020 election was "stolen." A former Georgia gym instructor turned political provocateur, she gained notoriety for embracing QAnon conspiracy theories, including false allegations that school shootings were staged and that Democrats were controlled by a shadowy pedophile ring.
Despite early controversies-including a 2021 House vote to strip her of committee assignments-Greene rebuilt influence under Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy. But her combative style alienated colleagues, culminating in her 2023 expulsion from the hardline House Freedom Caucus.
The fracture: Epstein files, shutdown fights, and policy clashes
The rift with Trump widened over his refusal to fully declassify Justice Department files on Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier linked to elite circles. Greene sided with Epstein's victims and Democrats to force a House vote on transparency-an extraordinary rebuke to Trump's administration.
Further tensions erupted during the recent government shutdown, where Greene broke ranks to criticize GOP inaction on expiring healthcare subsidies for low-income Americans. She publicly chastised Trump for prioritizing foreign conflicts over domestic economic struggles, tweeting in November: "The American people aren't motivated by foreign wars or bailouts. They want leaders who fight for them every day."
"I refuse to be a 'battered wife'"
In her resignation statement, Greene framed her exit as a rejection of what she called "MAGA Inc"-a movement she accused of being co-opted by "Neocons, Big Pharma, Big Tech, [and] the Military Industrial War Complex." She declared:
If I am cast aside by MAGA Inc and replaced by elites who can't relate to real Americans, then many common Americans have been cast aside too.
Trump, in turn, celebrated her departure, telling ABC News it was "great news for the country" before posting on Truth Social that Greene had "gone bad"-though he added a perfunctory thanks for her "service."
What's next: A Georgia comeback?
Greene, 51, will leave Congress on January 5 but has left the door open for a political return. Though she recently ruled out challenges for Georgia's governorship or Sen. Jon Ossoff's seat in 2026, her resignation timing allows flexibility. Her home state has shown Republicans like Gov. Brian Kemp can win without Trump's endorsement-a potential blueprint for her own reinvention.
Analysts note her exit coincides with waning GOP enthusiasm for Trump's economic record and his constitutional inability to run again. Greene's next move could test whether his movement can survive-and adapt-without him.
