Ex-Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene calls midterms a referendum on Trump
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The gist
Former GOP representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said a Republican midterm loss would be a complete referendum on Trump.
Her split with Trump now shapes the party's closing midterm message.
Background
Marjorie Taylor Greene is a former Republican representative from Georgia who was once one of Trump's biggest supporters in Congress. The rift emerged in Trump's second term, first around cryptocurrency legislation and later the Jeffrey Epstein files, which Greene pushed to release while aligning herself with Epstein survivors. She said goodbye to the GOP in June and resigned from Congress in January 2026, triggering a special election for her Georgia seat. She has since become a vocal critic of Trump's Iran war, his handling of the Epstein files and the cost of living.
How it unfolded
- Nov 17, 2025Greene said in an X post she had received death threats, hoax pizza deliveries and a pipe bomb threat on her construction company's office building, amid a war of words with Trump over the Epstein investigation.
- Nov 22, 2025Trump told ABC News that Greene's departure from Congress was "great news for the country" and later posted on Truth Social that she "went bad" but that he would "always appreciate Marjorie."
- Nov 24, 2025AP reported Greene's resignation was a surprise for some, describing her as first a defender of Trump and more recently someone who clashed with him.
- Jan 2026Greene resigned from Congress, triggering a special election for her Georgia seat.
- Mar 10, 2026Voters in Greene's Georgia district voted in a special election for her successor, months after she resigned following a falling out with Trump.
- Oct 26, 2026Greene posted on X that voters would send Republicans a "powerful lesson" on Nov 3rd but she was "not confident they will learn the lesson," saying Trump "massively violated" the 2024 America First mandate.
- Oct 30, 2026Greene shared a clip from an All-In podcast discussion on X, writing "I agree with @mcuban. Both parties are terrible."
- Nov 2, 2026Greene posted a 281-word repudiation of Trump's agenda on X, citing the Iran War and reports that the U.S. bombed an Iranian missile defense system near the Strait of Hormuz.
- Nov 2, 2026In a CNN interview with Kaitlan Collins, Greene said a possible GOP midterm loss would be "a complete referendum on Donald Trump."
- Nov 3, 2026Greene criticized Trump's Reflecting Pool speech, saying his remarks sent the "wrong message" to voters and that she was "very disappointed" with his closing midterms message.
Who’s saying what
- Greene
- Greene said a GOP loss would be a "complete referendum on Donald Trump" and his "betrayal" on foreign wars, the Epstein files and the cost of living, and also on Speaker Mike Johnson and Republicans who "never, ever stood up to Donald Trump."
- Trump
- Trump said Greene's departure was "great news for the country," that she "went bad" and "betrayed the entire Republican Party when she turned Left," while saying he would still thank her for her service.
- Cuban
- Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban said "the Republican Party isn't the Republican Party anymore. It's the Trump family business" and that he would "kick both parties to the curb" — a view Greene endorsed.
Still unverified
Greene cited reports that in the hours before the midterms the U.S. bombed an Iranian missile defense system on Qeshm island, and reports that Trump could be weighing a resumption of strikes after midterms.