Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., used a CBS News 60 Minutes interview to sharply criticize former ally President Donald Trump, saying he failed to put domestic policy first and accusing him of provoking threats against her and her son.
Greene said an “America First” leader should have prioritized the domestic promises that drove her campaign and added she prefers the “America First” label over Trump’s “MAGA.” The interview followed her announced resignation from Congress in January, a year before her term would have ended, after a public split with Trump and other party leaders.
That rupture grew out of Greene’s decision to sign a bipartisan discharge petition forcing a House vote to release government records related to Jeffrey Epstein. The measure reached the House floor, passed overwhelmingly, was unanimously approved in the Senate and was signed into law by Trump.
Greene described clashes with Trump over the Epstein files, saying he was “extremely angry” that she had signed the petition and warned the release would “hurt people.” She said she believes the victims “deserve everything” they are asking for and stood by the effort despite pressure. She said that because of Trump’s anger she and her son received multiple death threats; she said she sent messages with those threats to Trump and called his response “extremely unkind.”
She also said she notified FBI Director Kash Patel, who replied he was “on it,” and that Vice President J.D. Vance responded with “kindness and sympathy.” Greene recounted that Trump publicly derided her as “Marjorie Traitor Greene” after she broke with him, and said he later dismissed the threats, telling her he did not think her life was in danger and “I don’t think anybody cares about her.”
Greene criticized what she viewed as misplaced priorities while Trump opposed releasing the Epstein documents, pointing to his meetings with controversial foreign leaders, including Syrian officials and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as distractions that coincided with his attacks on her.
Asked whether she felt run out of town, Greene replied no, saying, “I will be no one’s battered wife … and I won’t allow the system to abuse me anymore.” She also denied that her split with Trump was driven by presidential ambition, saying she has “zero plans, zero desire to run for president,” and would not seek a Senate or governor’s seat.
The White House pushed back, issuing a statement noting that Trump has “already delivered on many of the promises he was elected to enact,” pointing to border security, measures on inflation and drug prices, tax changes, deportations of criminal noncitizens and reforms aimed at prioritizing American workers. A White House spokeswoman reiterated that as the architect of MAGA, Trump “will always put America First” and is working to fulfill his promises.
Greene’s break with Trump highlights broader Republican debate over whether the party is doing enough on domestic affordability — housing, food and energy costs — even as Trump points to lower gas prices and signs an executive order directing probes of anti-competitive behavior in food supply chains.
Scott Wong is a senior congressional reporter for NBC News.