Updated Dec. 11, 2025 — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said President Trump’s repeated public attacks on her show a troubling lack of self-awareness and reflect poorly on him as their feud continues.
“I actually am starting to feel very sorry for President Trump,” the Georgia Republican told CBS News. “It’s a very poor reflection on him that he chooses to speak about me that way.”
The dispute has escalated since Greene broke with party leaders, pressing for the release of files tied to Jeffrey Epstein and criticizing GOP handling of expiring Affordable Care Act premium tax credits. She has also criticized some of Trump’s policies, including tariffs and deportation measures, saying they have hurt U.S. businesses.
Trump has answered with sharp labels, calling Greene a “traitor” and a “lunatic,” withdrawing his support and suggesting he might back a primary challenger. After Greene announced she would resign from Congress, Trump continued to denounce her publicly, calling her a “dumb person” and comparing her to a “Rotten Apple” following her appearance on 60 Minutes.
Greene warned the president’s rhetoric could alienate female 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. “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.”
She argued that Trump treats loyalty as a one-way expectation. “It’s unfortunate that President Trump thinks loyalty is a one-way street. It’s really not,” Greene said. “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 challenged the president’s upbeat portrayal of the economy. Asked this week to grade the economy, Trump answered “A+++++.” Greene countered that his perspective is disconnected from many Americans’ reality. “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,” she said.
On political consequences, Greene predicted Republicans could lose control of the House in next year’s midterms. “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 notify Speaker Mike Johnson before announcing her retirement, describing the decision as a family matter. Johnson said he was “surprised” by her move. Greene — who at times had threatened to oust the speaker — aligned with other Republican women, including Elise Stefanik and Nancy Mace, in criticizing Johnson’s leadership and saying the conference had offered little to voters.
The clash deepened over Greene’s efforts to push for greater transparency around Jeffrey Epstein. She was an early signer of a bipartisan petition urging the Justice Department to disclose Epstein-related materials. The Epstein Files Transparency Act passed both chambers and orders the DOJ to make the files public by Dec. 19; Greene said she will believe it when she sees it and warned that withholding information would be “a complete break of trust with MAGA.”
If standing with Epstein victims makes her a “traitor,” Greene said she accepts the label. She added that threats against her and her family helped prompt 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.