'Trump Has Lied': Marjorie Taylor Greene Says 'MAGA Is Dead' and Calls Trump Backers 'In a Cult'

Former US representative Marjorie Taylor Greene has declared that 'MAGA is dead,' accusing President Donald Trump of betraying his supporters and saying Republicans who cannot hold him accountable are 'in a cult.'

Speaking at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Thursday, Sept. 24, the former Georgia Republican, once one of Trump's most prominent allies, said what she described as the president's broken promises had left her 'politically homeless' and arguing that the MAGA coalition had lost its previous meaning.

The remarks came after months of public sparring between Greene and Trump, centred on the release of files relating to Jeffrey Epstein and a series of policy disputes that escalated into personal attacks.

Trump withdrew his endorsement of Greene on Nov. 14, 2025, calling her 'wacky' and a 'traitor' after she pushed for the release of Epstein-related records, an issue tied to Trump's earlier promises of greater transparency. One week later, Greene announced she would resign from Congress, with her last day in office on 5 January 2026.

'MAGA Is Dead' and the Cult of Loyalty

At the festival, Greene said Trump had 'lied so much to us and betrayed us so incredibly beyond any of my comprehension,' prompting cheers from the crowd when she added, 'I think MAGA is dead.'

She drew a distinction between the America First movement, which she said she still believes in, and the broader MAGA coalition aligned with Trump, describing the latter as a 'cult' of unquestioning loyalty.

'When you vote for someone, not only are you supporting them, but you're holding them accountable,' Greene told the audience, according to multiple outlets covering the event. 'And if they can't be truthful and hold Trump accountable to his campaign promises that affect the entire country, then they're liars, and they're hypocrites and they're in a cult.'

Greene said many Republicans privately disagree with Trump but are unwilling to oppose him publicly because their careers depend on his endorsement and the threat of a Truth Social post. 'They're terrified of that Truth Social post,' she said. 'Absolutely terrified of it. There's a wrath that comes with it.'

Her disagreements with Trump also included cryptocurrency legislation, with Greene opposing the GENIUS Act unless it included a ban on central bank digital currencies, and intensified over the Epstein files after Greene pushed for full documentation while the president initially resisted.

During Trump's second term, Greene became increasingly critical of his handling of the Epstein files after he initially resisted efforts in Congress to compel their release, before reversing course and supporting legislation requiring the Justice Department to disclose the records, with Trump later dismissing the Epstein controversy as a 'hoax' and attacking Greene as a 'traitor.'

From Trump Loyalist to 'Politically Homeless'

Greene, who entered the House in 2021 as a staunchly pro-Trump figure, recalled a series of fights with the president during his second term, including being yelled at in the Oval Office and, according to Greene, receiving a text from Trump saying she 'deserved it' after her son received a death threat. She said she entered Washington 'naive' and left convinced the political system is fundamentally broken.

In her November 2025 resignation statement, Greene wrote that '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 warned that if she could be 'cast aside' by the MAGA movement, then 'many common Americans have been cast aside and replaced as well,' though she did not rule out a return to elected office.

Since leaving Congress, Greene has spoken with other conservatives who have broken with Trump, including former host Tucker Carlson and Kentucky representative Thomas Massie, according to her remarks in Austin. Greene said she did not see what she considered credible 2028 presidential candidates among those she knows who are considering a run.

On foreign policy, Greene said Trump's decision to attack Iran betrayed the America First movement and that his presidency will be judged on his actions in the Middle East.

'He's betrayed his campaign promises,' she said. 'Will he make a lasting peace deal or will he make a peace deal that he goes back on probably after the midterms?'

Despite her criticism of Trump and the Republican Party, Greene emphasised that she is not a liberal. 'Just because I'm 100% against what Donald Trump is doing and you hear me criticize the president because he changed and Republicans have just fallen in line with him, that doesn't mean that all of a sudden I'm in line with Democrat policies,' she said. 'I'm not.'

She also argued that policies pursued by both major parties had contributed to the country's roughly $40 trillion national debt and the loss of manufacturing jobs overseas.

'I watched every single small town in Georgia basically erode over my lifetime,' she said, noting she is 52 and that small towns she has known have seen their factories shut down.

Greene has not announced plans to seek elected office again, but her message is clear: the movement she helped champion is, in her view, finished.