U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene announced on Friday that she is stepping down from Congress, a move that follows a rapid and very public breakdown in her relationship with President Donald Trump. Her resignation, which takes effect January 5, ends the political run of one of Trump’s strongest former allies and throws fresh uncertainty over the direction of the Make America Great Again movement ahead of next year’s midterm elections.
Greene, who represents a deep-red district in northwest Georgia, said in a ten-minute video that she refused to “be a battered wife” after facing the prospect of a Trump-backed challenger and what she described as a sidelined Congress since Trump returned to the White House in January. “I have too much self-respect and dignity,” she said, explaining that she did not want her district to endure a bitter primary fight.
The rupture between the two Republicans had grown steadily in recent months, most sharply after Greene supported releasing government files connected to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The House later voted overwhelmingly to make the documents public. Trump blasted Greene before the vote, calling her a “traitor” and a “disgrace” to the party, later escalating to “ranting lunatic” as he withdrew his support.
Asked about her departure, Trump told ABC News that Greene’s resignation was “great news for the country.”
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Greene defended her vote on the Epstein files in her video, saying the decision reflected her commitment to victims of abuse. “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,” she said. She added that “loyalty should be a two-way street.”
Greene criticised both major parties for failing to address concerns facing ordinary Americans. She pointed to rising bills, higher rent, climbing grocery costs and increased competition for housing. “Voters know how much credit card debt they have. They actually do their own grocery shopping and know food costs too much,” she said, arguing that families were growing more frustrated with Washington.
The 50-year-old lawmaker won her seat with 64 percent of the vote in 2024, and many residents in her district had hoped her dispute with Trump would eventually fade. But Greene signaled she had no interest in confronting a Trump-backed challenger only to serve in what she expects will be a Republican minority after the midterms. She said she would face the “absurd” prospect of defending Trump in future impeachment proceedings while being attacked by his political machine.