Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s abrupt resignation from Congress after her bitter falling-out with President Trump is exposing divisions within the MAGA movement less than a year before the crucial midterm elections that will shape the final two years of the Trump presidency.
Ms. Greene, long one of Mr. Trump’s most outspoken allies, announced Friday that she would step down Jan. 5.
Her decision has sparked a frenzy of speculation about whether she is reconsidering running for the U.S. Senate, the Georgia governor’s mansion or even a long-shot bid for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination. Others predicted a pivot to media.
On Sunday, Ms. Greene said a report in Time that said she was considering a White House run was a “complete lie.”
“I’m not running for president and never said I wanted to and have only laughed about it when anyone would mention it,” she said.
Ms. Greene built her political brand on loyalty to Mr. Trump and the “America First” movement, and her no-holds-barred rhetoric made her one of the most polarizing figures in Washington.
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Things have changed in recent months.
Ms. Greene grew disillusioned with Mr. Trump and the Republican-led Congress, frustrated by their focus on foreign policy and failure to tackle rising costs, including in health care, that are straining American budgets.
The breaking point was when she broke ranks with most other Republicans by supporting the release of government files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. At the time, the move put her squarely at odds with the president.
Mr. Trump responded by withdrawing his support for her and floating the prospect of backing a primary challenger.
Some political observers said Ms. Greene did not betray Mr. Trump. They said Mr. Trump betrayed her and the “America First” movement on issues such as H-1B immigration visas, aid and military support for Israel, and the Epstein files. Mr. Trump had long fought the release of the files.
In her resignation video, Ms. Greene insisted that she could win reelection but that she didn’t want her congressional district to “have to endure a hurtful and hateful primary against me by the president we all fought for.”
Ms. Greene said she was one of the most steadfast supporters of Mr. Trump and the “America First” agenda, and she defended her position on the Epstein files.
“Loyalty should be a two-way street, and we should be able to vote our conscience and represent our district’s interests because our job title is literally ‘Representative,’” she said.
“Standing up for American women who were raped at 14, trafficked and used by rich, powerful men should not result in me being called a traitor and threatened by the president of the United States, whom I fought for.”
Ms. Greene said she had “too much self-respect” to run again, only to have Republicans lose the House and then be “expected to defend the president against impeachment after he hatefully dumped tens of millions of dollars against me and tried to destroy me.”
“I refuse to be a ‘battered wife’ hoping it all goes away and gets better,” she said.
Mr. Trump celebrated Ms. Greene’s departure by telling ABC News, “I think it’s great news for the country.”
“Marjorie ‘Traitor’ Brown, because of plummeting poll numbers, and not wanting to face a primary challenger with a strong Trump Endorsement (where she would have no chance of winning!), has decided to call it ‘quits,’” Mr. Trump said on Truth Social, botching the lawmaker’s surname.
“For some reason, primarily that I refused to return her never-ending barrage of phone calls, Marjorie went BAD,” he said.
Reaction in Congress to Ms. Greene’s announcement was divided.
Sen. Rand Paul, Kentucky Republican, lamented her exit.
“I think it’s important that we have independent voices,” Mr. Paul said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “So I am sad to see her voice go away or potentially go away.”
Democrats were less forgiving. They often used Ms. Greene as a foil and an example of Republican extremism and worse.
“Honestly, I was like, ‘You have got to be kidding me,’” said Rep. Jasmine Crockett, Texas Democrat. “You’re on the other side of the president for one week and you can’t take the heat.”
“Imagine what it is to sit in my shoes, to not only be on the opposite side of him, but to have people like her who are constantly fanning the flames of hate,” she said.
Although they needed the help of 11 Republicans, Democrats succeeded in 2021 in stripping Ms. Greene of all her committee assignments over some incendiary remarks. Multiple efforts to have her formally censured, though, either failed or were dropped by party leadership.
Before her resignation, they sensed an opportunity. Rep. Jaime Raskin of Maryland suggested that Ms. Greene would be welcome in the Democratic Party’s “big tent.”
“I say, this is a party that’s got room for Marjorie Taylor Greene, if she wants to come over,” Mr. Raskin said this month at a fundraiser in Miami, to a mixed reaction from the crowd. “We got room for anybody who wants to stand up for the Constitution and for the Bill of Rights today.”
