Connect with us

The Dictatorship

MAGA ROCKED… DEVELOPING…

Published

on

MAGA ROCKED… DEVELOPING…

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, a loyal supporter-turned-critic of President Donald Trump who faced his political retribution if she sought reelection, said Friday she is resigning from Congress in January.

Greene, in a more than 10-minute video posted online, explained her decision and said she didn’t want her congressional district “to have to endure a hurtful and hateful primary against me by the president we all fought for,” she said.

Greene’s resignation followed a public falling-out with Trump in recent months, as the congresswoman criticized him for his stance on files related to Jeffrey Epstein, along with foreign policy and health care.

Trump branded her a “traitor” and “wacky” and said he would endorse a challenger against her when she ran for reelection next year.

She said her last day would be Jan. 5, 2026.

The White House did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Friday night.

In a brief phone call Friday night, Trump told ABC News that Greene’s resignation is “great news for the country.” He said had no plans to speak with Greene but wishes her well.

Greene was one of the most vocal and visible supporters of Trump’s Make America Great Again politics, and she embraced some of his unapologetic political style.

Her break with him was a notable fissure in his grip over conservatives, particularly his most ardent base. But her decision to step down in the face of his opposition put her on the same track as many of the more moderate establishment Republicans before her who went crosswise with Trump.

The congresswoman, who recorded the video announcing her resignation while sitting in her living room wearing a cross necklace and with a Christmas tree and a peace lily plant behind her, said, “My life is filled with happiness, and my true convictions remain unchanged, because my self-worth is not defined by a man, but instead by God.”

A crack in the MAGA movement

Greene had been closely tied to the Republican president since she launched her political career five years ago.

In her video Friday, she underscored her longtime loyalty to Trump except on a few issues, and said it was “unfair and wrong” that he attacked her for disagreeing.

“Loyalty should be a two-way street and we should be able to vote our conscience and represent our district’s interest, because our job title is literally ‘representative,’” she said.

Greene swept to office at the forefront of Trump’s MAGA movement and quickly became a lightning rod on Capitol Hill for her often beyond-mainstream views. In her video Friday, Greene said she had “always been despised in Washington, D.C., and just never fit in.”

As she embraced the QAnon conspiracy theory and appeared with white supremacists, Greene was initially opposed by party leaders but welcomed by Trump. He called her “a real WINNER!”

President Donald Trump greets Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., after addressing a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, March 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

President Donald Trump greets Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., after addressing a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, March 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

Yet over time she proved a deft legislator, having aligned herself with then-GOP leader Kevin McCarthy, who would go on to become House speaker. She was a trusted voice on the right flank, until McCarthy was ousted in 2023.

While there has been an onslaught of lawmakers from both parties heading for the exits ahead of next fall’s midterm elections, as the House struggles through an often chaotic session, Greene’s announced retirement will ripple throughout the ranks — and raise questions about her next moves.

Greene was first elected to the House in 2020. She initially planned to run in a competitive district in northern Atlanta’s suburbs, but relocated to the much more conservative 14th District in Georgia’s northwest corner.

The opening in her district means Republican Gov. Brian Kemp will have to set a special election date within 10 days of Greene’s resignation. Such a special election would fill out the remainder of Greene’s term through January 2027. Those elections could take place before the party primaries in May for the next two-year term.

Conspiracy-minded

Even before her election, Greene showed a penchant for harsh rhetoric and conspiracy theories, suggesting a 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas was a coordinated attack to spur support for new gun restrictions. In 2018, she endorsed the idea that the U.S. government perpetrated the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, and mused that a “so-called” plane had hit the Pentagon.

Greene argued in 2019 that Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., both Muslim women, weren’t “official” members of Congress because they used Qurans rather than Bibles in their swearing-in ceremonies.

She was once a sympathizer with QAnonan online network that believes a global cabal of Satan-worshipping cannibals, including U.S. government leaders, operates a child sex trafficking ring. She eventually distanced herself, saying she got “sucked into some of the things I had seen on the internet.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., speaks after a town-hall style meeting, April 15, 2025, in Acworth, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., speaks after a town-hall style meeting, April 15, 2025, in Acworth, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

During the pandemic, she drew backlash and apologized for comparing the wearing of safety masks to the horrors of the Holocaust.

She also drew ridicule and condemnation after a conspiracy she speculated about on Facebook in 2018, in which she suggested a California wildfire may have been caused by “lasers or blue beams of light” controlled by a left-wing cabal tied to a prominent Jewish family.

When Trump was out of power between his first and second terms, Greene was often a surrogate for his views and brash style in Washington.

While then-President Joe Biden delivered his State of the Union address in 2022, Greene stood up and began chanting “Build the wall,” referring to the U.S.-Mexico border wall that Trump began in his first term.

Last year, when Biden gave his last State of the Union address, Greene again drew attention as she confronted him over border security and the killing of a nursing student from Georgia, Laken Riley, by an immigrant in the country illegally.

Greene, wearing a red MAGA hat and a T-shirt about Riley, handed the president a button that said “Say Her Name.” The congresswoman then shouted that at the president midway through his speech.

Frustration with the GOP

But this year, her first serving with Trump in the White House, cracks began to appear slowly in her steadfast support — before it broke wide open.

Greene’s discontent dates back at least to May, when she announced she wouldn’t run for the Senate against Democratic incumbent Jon Ossoff, while attacking GOP donors and consultants who feared she couldn’t win.

Greene’s restlessness only intensified in July, when she announced she wouldn’t run for Georgia governor, either.

She was also frustrated with the Republican leadership on Capitol Hill, which worked in lockstep with the president.

Greene said in her video that “the legislature has been mostly sidelined” since Republicans took unified control of Washington in January and her bills “just sit collecting dust.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., arrives to a news conference on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., arrives to a news conference on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

“That’s how it is for most members of Congress’ bills,” she said. “The speaker never brings them to the floor for a vote.”

Messages left with House Speaker Mike Johnson’s office were not immediately returned.

Republicans will likely lose the midterms elections next year, Greene said, and then she’d “be expected to defend the president against impeachment after he hatefully dumped tens of millions of dollars against me and tried to destroy me.”

“It’s all so absurd and completely unserious,” she said. “I refuse to be a battered wife hoping it all goes away and gets better.”

___

Amy reported from Atlanta. Associated Press writer Jonathan J. Cooper in Phoenix contributed to this report.

Read More

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

The Dictatorship

Trump says he’ll release MRI results

Published

on

Trump says he’ll release MRI results

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump’ s doctor says the president had MRI imaging on his heart and abdomen in October as part of a preventative screening for men his age, according to a memo from the physician released by the White House on Monday.

Sean Barbabella said in a statement that Trump’s physical exam included “advanced imaging” that is “standard for an executive physical” in Trump’s age group. Barbabella concluded that the cardiovascular and abdominal imaging was “perfectly normal.”

“The purpose of this imaging is preventative: to identify issues early, confirm overall health, and ensure he maintains long-term vitality and function,” the doctor wrote.

The White House released Barbabella’s memo after Trump on Sunday said he would release the results of the scan. He and the White House have said the scan was “part of his routine physical examination” but had declined until Monday to detail why Trump had an MRI during his physical in October at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center or on what part of his body.

“I think that’s quite a bit of detail,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday when announcing the memo’s release.

The Republican president said Sunday during an exchange with reporters as he traveled back to Washington from Florida that the results of the MRI were “perfect.”

“If you want to have it released, I’ll release it,” Trump said.

Trump added Sunday that he has “no idea” on what part of his body he got the MRI.

“It was just an MRI,” he said. “What part of the body? It wasn’t the brain because I took a cognitive test and I aced it.”

Doctors typically order an MRI to help with diagnosing symptoms or to monitor an ongoing health problem. So-called “preventive” cardiac and abdominal MRIs are not part of routine screening recommendations. What Trump’s doctor called an “executive physical” generally refers to adding extra, non-routine tests including MRIs to pricey and lengthy exams, not covered by insurance, that are marketed to wealthy people.

Read More

Continue Reading

The Dictatorship

Trump commutes prison sentence for private equity executive

Published

on

Trump commutes prison sentence for private equity executive

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump has commuted the prison sentence of former investment manager David Gentile, who was convicted of defrauding investors — the latest in a series of clemency actions Trump has taken in white-collar criminal cases.

Gentile had reported to prison on Nov. 14, just days before Trump commuted his sentence, according to a White House official who requested anonymity to provide details of the clemency action. Gentile had been the CEO and co-founder of GPB Capital, which had raised $1.6 billion in capital to acquire companies in the auto, retail, health care and housing sectors.

He had been sentenced to seven years in prison after an August 2024 conviction for his role in what the Justice Department at the time described as a scheme to defraud more than 10,000 investors by misrepresenting the performance of three private equity funds.

But the White House official said GPB Capital had disclosed to investors in 2015 that their capital might go to pay dividends to other investors, which the White House said undercut claims that the company had engaged in a “Ponzi” scheme in which new investments are used to reimburse previous investors.

The government has agreed to no restitution in the criminal case, though various civil cases are handling repayments and damages to investors.

Read More

Continue Reading

The Dictatorship

Lawmakers voice support for congressional reviews of Trump’s military strikes on boats

Published

on

Lawmakers voice support for congressional reviews of Trump’s military strikes on boats

WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawmakers from both parties said Sunday they support congressional reviews of U.S. military strikes against vessels suspected of smuggling drugs in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean, citing a published report that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order for all crew members to be killed as part of a Sept. 2 attack.

The lawmakers said they did not know whether last week’s Washington Post report was true, and some Republicans were skeptical, but they said attacking survivors of an initial missile strike poses serious legal concerns.

“This rises to the level of a war crime if it’s true,” said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va.

Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, when asked about a follow-up strike aimed at people no longer able to fight, said Congress does not have information that happened. He noted that leaders of the Armed Services Committee in both the House and Senate have opened investigations.

“Obviously, if that occurred, that would be very serious and I agree that that would be an illegal act,” Turner said.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump on Sunday evening while flying back to Washington from Florida, where he celebrated Thanksgiving, confirmed that he had recently spoken with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

The U.S. administration says the strikes in the Caribbean are aimed at cartels, some of which it claims are controlled by Maduro. Trump also is weighing whether to carry out strikes on the Venezuelan mainland.

Trump declined to comment on details of the call, which was first reported by The New York Times.

“I wouldn’t say it went well or badly,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, when asked about the call.

The Venezuelan communications ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the call with Trump.

Turner said there are concerns in Congress about the attacks on vessels that the Trump administration says are transporting drugs, but the allegation regarding the Sept. 2 attack “is completely outside anything that has been discussed with Congress and there is an ongoing investigation.”

The comments from lawmakers during news show appearances come as the administration escalates a campaign to combat drug trafficking into the U.S. On Saturday, Trump said the airspace “above and surrounding” Venezuela should be considered as “closed in its entirety,” an assertion that raised more questions about the U.S. pressure on Maduro. Maduro’s government accused Trump of making a ”colonial threat” and seeking to undermine the South American country’s sovereignty.

After the Post’s report, Hegseth said Friday on X that “fake news is delivering more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland.”

“Our current operations in the Caribbean are lawful under both U.S. and international law, with all actions in compliance with the law of armed conflict—and approved by the best military and civilian lawyers, up and down the chain of command,” Hegseth wrote.

Trump said on Sunday the administration “will look into” the matter but added, “I wouldn’t have wanted that — not a second strike.” The president also defended Hegseth.

“Pete said he did not order the death of those two men,” Trump said. He added, “And I believe him.”

Republican Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and its top Democrat, Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, said in a joint statement late Friday that the committee “will be conducting vigorous oversight to determine the facts related to these circumstances.”

That was followed Saturday with the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Republican Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama, and the ranking Democratic member, Washington Rep. Adam Smith, issuing a joint statement saying the panel was committed to “providing rigorous oversight of the Department of Defense’s military operations in the Caribbean.”

“We take seriously the reports of follow-on strikes on boats alleged to be ferrying narcotics in the SOUTHCOM region and are taking bipartisan action to gather a full accounting of the operation in question,” Rogers and Smith said, referring to U.S. Southern Command.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., asked about the Sept. 2 attack, said Hegseth deserves a chance to present his side.

“We should get to the truth. I don’t think he would be foolish enough to make this decision to say, kill everybody, kill the survivors because that’s a clear violation of the law of war,” Bacon said. “So, I’m very suspicious that he would’ve done something like that because it would go against common sense.”

Kaine and Turner appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” and Bacon was on ABC’s “This Week.”

Read More

Continue Reading

Trending