Marjorie Taylor Greene鈥檚 split with Trump is the talk of her Georgia district
| Rome, Georgia
When Bill Newton gathers with his buddies at Doug鈥檚 Diner in downtown Rome, Georgia, it is a politically diverse crew: Two staunch Democrats, of which he is one; two moderate Republicans; and one wealthy Republican who backs Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Amid the breakfast bustle, the group talks politics and local gossip. It is the kind of social gathering that might seem elusive in a polarized, scorched-earth era, one which Ms. Greene, a MAGA firebrand first elected to Congress in 2020, has come to personify. Here in this Atlanta exurb, home to middle-class dreams and working-class struggles, is Ms. Greene鈥檚 world, studded with modest housing developments, strip malls, and roadside gyms 鈥� all wedged into the Appalachian foothills.
In Ms. Greene's ruby-red district, support for President Donald Trump runs deep, which is why their highly publicized spat is the talk of this diner counter. In recent weeks, she has broken with Mr. Trump on Israel policy, health-care premiums, inflation, and, most notably, the release of the Justice Department鈥檚 files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. She was one of four GOP lawmakers who sided with Democrats over the Epstein matter, ultimately forcing Mr. Trump to reverse course and sign a bill on Wednesday to release the files.
Why We Wrote This
The public falling-out between U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and President Donald Trump has brought splits in the MAGA movement into the open. In Ms. Greene鈥檚 solidly Republican district, voters are weighing their populist allegiances.
In return, Mr. Trump has ridiculed Ms. Greene, who had been among his most ardent and outspoken supporters, and labeled her a traitor. None of which has cowed her. 鈥淚鈥檝e never owed him anything,鈥� , held with some of Mr. Epstein鈥檚 victims. She said she fought for President Trump and 鈥渇or America first,鈥� and then he called her a traitor 鈥渇or standing with these women.鈥�
鈥淟et me tell you what a traitor is. A traitor is an American that serves foreign countries and themselves. A patriot is an American that serves the United States of America, and Americans like the women standing behind me,鈥� she said.
Her refusal to back down has fueled talk of a split within the MAGA coalition and of a possible dilution of Mr. Trump鈥檚 near-absolute sway over the Republican base. It has also raised questions about Ms. Greene鈥檚 political future and whether she will moderate her caustic political style, and, if so, to what end. On Sunday, that she regretted taking part in 鈥渢oxic politics,鈥� saying that the assassination of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk had prompted her to reflect on her combative rhetoric.
Among Republicans going about their daily lives in Ms. Greene鈥檚 district, there is respect for her policy positions and a degree of frustration with the president they voted for. Many cast their votes in hopes of better economic times.
Greg Ledbetter works for a company in Rome that makes styrofoam bait coolers. He reckons America 鈥渉as her bounce back鈥� under Mr. Trump and that inflation is under control. But he鈥檚 also a fan of Ms. Greene, who he says 鈥渓ooks out for the lower and middle classes, which is where I fit in.鈥� He wants to uncover all the facts about Mr. Epstein and thinks that Mr. Trump is too focused on foreign policy and not on 鈥淎merica First.鈥�
鈥淚n some ways, Trump is not doing everything he could be doing for the people, and I think she is, or is trying,鈥� he says.
Most Trump supporters in northeastern Georgia don鈥檛 pay close attention to Washington politics, says David Pennington, the former mayor of Dalton, a carpet-making city north of Rome. But they certainly feel the pinch of a slowing economy and 鈥渕indboggling鈥� rises in health-care premiums. While he鈥檚 not been a supporter of Ms. Greene, Mr. Pennington says he is happy to see GOP lawmakers like Ms. Greene buck Mr. Trump and refocus on the economy.
But it鈥檚 hard to be a Trump critic inside the party, he warns. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a balancing act. A lot of her voters are Trump voters, and they support him regardless of what he does.鈥�
鈥淪he鈥檚 a central character of our age鈥�
By calling Ms. Greene a traitor, Mr. Trump is turning a policy disagreement into a personal feud that is hard to square with her record, says Amy Steigerwalt, a political science professor at Georgia State University. Her criticisms over health-care and grocery prices are 鈥渃hanneling the interests of her constituents,鈥� while the release of the Epstein files was a campaign promise to the MAGA base. 鈥淚t seems so farcical to say this person who has been such a bastion of support can鈥檛 express a differing view on a couple of things,鈥� she says.
Mr. Trump has vowed to support a primary challenger to Ms. Greene, who was unopposed in her last primary and won reelection by nearly 30 points.
鈥淭here are a lot of folks in town who stand behind Trump who are questioning her,鈥� says Ansley, a real estate agent who didn鈥檛 want to give her last name for fear of alienating potential clients. A Democrat, Ansley hasn鈥檛 voted for Ms. Greene, but that could change. 鈥淚 always thought she was too radical, but it seems like she鈥檚 had an epiphany. It seems she鈥檚 trying to do the right thing.鈥�
Back at the diner, Mr. Newton, a retired lawyer, says he鈥檚 not a fan of Ms. Greene鈥檚 politics or her firebrand style. But it鈥檚 different when she stops by the diner to talk, as she sometimes does. 鈥淚n person, she is very affable and pleasant, and interestingly, she never talks politics,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 do think she鈥檚 a central character of our age. In that way, I hope the change in her is sincere.鈥�
A former gym owner, Ms. Greene won her first election in 2020 as an outsider. She quickly plunged into controversy in Congress over her spreading of conspiracy theories related to the 2020 election, coronavirus vaccines, and other topics.聽She has also made controversial remarks critical of Jews, Muslims, and Black Americans.聽Even Republican lawmakers sometimes kept their distance. When Mr. Trump faced legal jeopardy over efforts to overturn the 2020 election that he lost, Ms. Greene never wavered in her support and her fierce partisanship.
That makes her an unlikely voice of reason in Washington. But her willingness to defy the White House and to advocate for pocketbook policies on CNN and other outlets 鈥済ives her national prominence and a lot of flexibility,鈥� says Matt Wylie, a GOP strategist based in South Carolina.
For example, Ms. Greene says her constituents are worried about grocery costs and that while Mr. Trump has lowered inflation since taking office, it鈥檚 still a pressing issue. 鈥淪o, gaslighting the people and trying to tell them that prices have come down is not helping. It鈥檚 actually infuriating people,鈥� (Mr. Trump has repeatedly said prices 鈥渁re way down鈥� and that inflation 鈥�.鈥�)
What matters to voters in Georgia鈥檚 14th District
Analysts say any primary challenger will struggle to unseat Ms. Greene, given her MAGA credentials and fundraising skills. She also has , whose governor, Brian Kemp, has carved out his own political lane and easily defeated a Trump-endorsed challenger in 2022.
鈥淩ecent national criticism directed at Congresswoman Greene does not change the fundamental truth that she serves at the direction of the people of this district,鈥� Jim Tully, chairman of the Georgia Republican Party for the 14th District, on social media. 鈥淲e remain confident in her ability to represent our district with honor and conviction.鈥�
Mr. Wylie says the White House should be more focused on the midterm threat from Democrats and on the cost-of-living issues that Ms. Greene has surfaced. And at a time when Republicans in Congress have been beholden to Mr. Trump, Ms. Greene could now have 鈥渢he leverage to come out and assert the leadership that鈥檚 missing.鈥�
Whether her shift in tone and priorities is a political calculation or a Damascene conversion is not yet clear. But to some in her district, it鈥檚 a welcome departure, perhaps a first step towards a more inviting public square, the kind still found in places like Mr. Newton鈥檚 gatherings. Down the street from the diner, public works employees are decorating a Christmas tree; one worker nimbly tosses up fragile ornaments to a colleague in a cherry picker.
In Mr. Ledbetter鈥檚 view, Ms. Greene鈥檚 鈥渁pology wasn鈥檛 a sign of weakness. Apologies can make you look strong. It shows you care and that you want to do better.鈥�
Steve Morgan, a farmer gassing up his faded GMC truck just outside Rome, is more skeptical. On one hand, the split from Trump suggests that Ms. Greene鈥檚 ear is tuned to the ground in her district, given that she is willing to risk so much 鈥� including what she has said are threats to her life. But that doesn鈥檛 mean Mr. Morgan would vote for her come election time.
鈥淭hey tell you what they want you to hear,鈥欌�� he says of politicians. 鈥淎nd then they do what they want to do.鈥欌��
Patrik Jonsson reported from Rome, Georgia, and Simon Montlake from Boston.
