Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said the battle over the release of the Epstein files has sent President Donald Trump “over the edge” after he publicly withdrew his support for the Georgia Congresswoman.
Greene, standard-bearer of the MAGA movement and formerly strong supporter of the president, said in a post on X Friday night that it was “astonishing really how hard he’s fighting to stop the Epstein files from coming out that he actually goes to this level.”
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“And of course he’s coming after me hard to make an example to scare all the other Republicans before next weeks vote to release the Epstein files,” she said.
Read More: Emails From Epstein Allege Trump Knew of His Conduct. Here’s What They Say
The explosive fallout comes as the House of Representatives is moving closer to a vote on a discharge petition—a procedural tactic that allows members to circumvent House leadership to bring a bill to the floor if a majority approves—on the release of the Epstein files.
Currently, all House Democrats and four Republicans: Reps. Thomas Massie, Lauren Boebert, Nancy Mace and Greene have all signed the petition. The White House and House Speaker Mike Johnson have been fiercely lobbying against the release of the files.
In her post, Greene also shared screenshots of text messages she had allegedly sent to Trump or his advisors on Friday, urging him to release the so-called Epstein files—the broad descriptor given to the thousands of pages of documents, records, law enforcement interviews, seized hard drives and other materials resulting from investigations into the convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. In one of the texts, she appears to write: “Stop ignoring the women.”
Her post came in response to a late-Friday post from the president on Truth Social, in which he announced he was withdrawing his support for Greene. Trump, however, cited reasons other than the Epstein files.
“…all I see ‘Wacky’ Marjorie do is COMPLAIN, COMPLAIN, COMPLAIN! It seemed to all begin when I sent her a Poll stating that she should not run for Senator, or Governor, she was at 12%, and didn’t have a chance (unless, of course, she had my Endorsement — which she wasn’t about to get!),” he wrote.
Read More: The 4 Republicans Who Joined Democrats to Force a House Vote on Releasing Epstein Files
“She has told many people that she is upset that I don’t return her phone calls anymore, but with 219 Congressmen/women, 53 U.S. Senators, 24 Cabinet Members, almost 200 Countries, and an otherwise normal life to lead, I can’t take a ranting Lunatic’s call every day. I understand that wonderful, Conservative people are thinking about primarying Marjorie in her District of Georgia, that they too are fed up with her and her antics and, if the right person runs, they will have my Complete and Unyielding Support,” he added.
Greene said that Trump “attacked me and lied about me” in his post.
“I haven’t called him at all, but I did send these text messages today. Apparently, this is what sent him over the edge. The Epstein files.”
Trump also took a swipe on Friday at Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican of Kentucky, who was the driving force behind the discharge petition alongside Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna. In a post also on Truth Social, Trump called him a “loser,” but did not mention the Epstein files.
Trump and Epstein’s relationship
Trump has long faced questions over his relationship with Epstein. The president has long maintained that his ties to Epstein were limited to social interactions common in Palm Beach, Florida, where both men owned property in the 1990s. Epstein’s mansion sat just down the road from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, and the financier was reportedly a regular for several years at Mar-a-Lago.
“Well, I knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him. I mean, people in Palm Beach knew him. He was a fixture in Palm Beach,” Trump said in 2019, soon after Epstein was charged. “I had a falling out with him a long time ago. I don’t think I’ve spoken to him for 15 years. I wasn’t a fan.”
Those questions have grown louder as his Administration has worked to prevent the release of the files, and since Ghislaine Maxwell, a longtime associate of Epstein currently serving a 20-year sentence for child sex trafficking and related offenses, was moved to a minimum security prison usually reserved for people who have been convicted of financial crimes following questioning by Trump’s Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
The fallout between Trump and Greene, one of his most diehard MAGA supporters, is another sign of a deepening fracture within the president’s base over the Epstein files.
Trump said during his 2024 presidential campaign that he would release the Epstein files.
In June 2024, Trump was asked by Fox News’ Rachel Campos-Duffy if he would “declassify the Epstein files.” Trump responded, “Yeah, yeah, I would.”
Many in Trump’s inner circle rose to prominence as fervent advocates for the release of the files.
Kash Patel said before joining the Trump Administration as the FBI Director that the institution he now leads was protecting Epstein by not releasing the files, “because of who’s on that list.” He vowed a “wave of transparency” when entering office, and had urged Trump to “roll out the black book on day one” of office.
Attorney General Pam Bondi agreed that the Epstein files should be released, and when asked by Fox News on February 21 whether “the list of Jeffrey Epstein’s clients” would be released, Bondi said it was “sitting on my desk right now, to review.” Bondi later said that she meant the Epstein files, not the client list. Her Department of Justice later said in a release that the so-called client list—a long-rumoured list of high-profile figures to whom Epstein provided young girls from his sex trafficking ring—does not exist, starting a firestorm of criticism from some of MAGA’s own base.
Since then, both Bondi and Patel have attempted to move past the matter. In February, Bondi released the first wave of the “Epstein Files,” but a review found that most of the information had already been released and that many documents had been heavily redacted.
The FBI and DOJ formally closed the Epstein case in a joint memo in July, saying they “did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.”
Trump himself repeatedly sought to shut down discussion of the Epstein files.
“Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy’s been talked about for years,” Trump asked a reporter in July who questioned Bondi on reviewing the Epstein files. “Are people still talking about this guy? This creep? That is unbelievable.”
He even lashed out at his own supporters who were angered after the DOJ memo announcing the lack of a client list: “My PAST supporters have bought into this ‘bull—t,’ hook, line, and sinker,” he wrote on Truth Social in July. “I don’t want their support anymore!”
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