By Nikole Killion and Caitlin Yilek
Updated on: December 11, 2025 / 2:00 AM EST / CBS News
Washington — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said President Trump lacks self-awareness as he continues to attack the conservative firebrand who was once one of his fiercest allies in Congress.
“I actually am starting to feel very sorry for President Trump,” the Georgia Republican told CBS News. “It’s actually a very poor reflection on him that he chooses to speak about me that way.”
Mr. Trump has labeled Greene a “traitor” and a “lunatic” after she split from Republican leaders to demand release of files related to Jeffrey Epstein and criticized the party’s handling of expiring Affordable Care Act premium tax credits. She has also faulted Trump’s tariffs and deportation policies for harming U.S. businesses.
Last month the president withdrew his support for Greene and suggested he might back a primary challenger. A week later Greene announced she would resign from Congress, citing her falling-out with the president. Trump has continued to lash out, calling her a “dumb person” and saying she “sort of reminds me of a Rotten Apple” after her “60 Minutes” appearance.
Greene warned that Trump’s name-calling could alienate women voters. “He always continues to speak about women like this, and that’s something that women all over the country pay attention to,” she said. “I think the Republican Party needs to take a hard look at it, because the Republican Party has a very difficult time with women voting for them.”
“It’s unfortunate that President Trump thinks loyalty is a one-way street. It’s really not,” she added. “I do feel sorry for him, because I think he’s extremely unaware… he’s not aware of how it makes him really look.”
Greene also criticized Trump’s portrayal of the economy as disconnecting from everyday Americans’ struggles. Asked to grade the economy this week, Trump responded “A+++++.” Greene said, “The president needs to be aware that he’s a billionaire president of the United States. You can’t gaslight people and tell them that their bills are affordable… I think it’s insulting to people’s intelligence.”
On whether affordability could cost Republicans control of the House in next year’s midterms, Greene said she believes the party will lose. “I very much wanted to be part of a Republican majority in Congress that solved problems for the American people,” she said.
Greene said she did not warn Speaker Mike Johnson before announcing her retirement, calling it a personal family decision. Johnson later said he was “surprised” by her choice. Greene, who once threatened to oust the Speaker, agreed with other Republican women — including Elise Stefanik and Nancy Mace — who have recently criticized Johnson’s leadership, saying the conference has produced “hardly anything to give back to the people.”
Greene’s rift with Trump deepened over the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. She was an early signer of a bipartisan petition pushing the Justice Department to disclose information about Epstein. The Epstein Files Transparency Act passed both chambers and orders the DOJ to make the files public by Dec. 19. “I’ll believe it when I see it,” Greene said, urging the administration to release all information. “If they don’t release all of the information… that will be a complete break of trust with MAGA.”
She said if Trump called her a traitor for standing with Epstein’s victims, she accepts that. “I’m completely okay with it,” she said, adding that the threats against her and her family influenced her decision to leave Congress. “It was the direct death threats and assassination threats on my son, and that crossed my line,” Greene said. “It should cross anyone’s line, no matter who we are, no matter what disagreements we have.”
Jaala Brown contributed to this report.
