Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene declared Tuesday that the release of the Epstein files marked “our demise” after Rep. Thomas Massie lost his Republican primary to Trump-backed candidate Ed Gallrein.
Reacting to the defeat in a fiery social media post, Greene praised Massie as “a giant among weak pathetic men” and portrayed his loss as a devastating blow to what she described as the “Real America First Movement.”
“Releasing the Epstein files was our demise,” Greene wrote. “But it was worth every single bit because now everyone knows the truth.”
She went on to accuse elected leaders of being controlled by what she called the “Epstein class” and a “foreign lobby,” while warning that the future of the Republican Party had been “destroyed.”
“The Real America First Movement will rise led by the younger generations, who hate the old guard with an unquenchable passion,” Greene added.
The remarks came after months of infighting within Republican circles surrounding efforts to force greater transparency regarding government records connected to deceased financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Massie had recently discussed the controversy during an appearance with Tucker Carlson, where he described the political fallout faced by Republicans who supported the discharge petition tied to the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
According to Massie, Greene, Rep. Nancy Mace and Rep. Lauren Boebert all suffered politically after backing the effort.
“Marjorie practically gave up her political career over this,” Massie said. “She and her children got death threats over this. Not from the left, from the right.”
Massie also claimed President Donald Trump retaliated against Boebert after she supported the petition. According to Massie, Trump vetoed a bill that would have delivered water resources to a large portion of Colorado as political payback tied to the Epstein file controversy.
The feud highlights growing fractures inside the Republican Party between Trump loyalists and lawmakers who have broken with the president on certain issues, particularly surrounding demands for full disclosure of government documents connected to Epstein and his associates.
Following Greene’s resignation from Congress earlier this year and Massie’s primary defeat Tuesday, only Boebert and Mace will soon remain in Congress among the four Republicans who signed onto the Epstein files discharge petition.
Trump himself escalated tensions over the weekend with a sharp warning directed at Boebert after she endorsed Massie during his primary fight. Writing on Truth Social, Trump threatened to support a challenger against the Colorado congresswoman despite previously endorsing her.
“Boebert is campaigning for the Worst ‘Republican’ Congressman in the History of our Country, Thomas Massie,” Trump wrote. “Anybody who can be that dumb deserves a good Primary fight!”
The president added that while he had “long ago endorsed Boebert,” he would gladly back “a good and proper alternative” if another candidate entered the race.
The escalating battle over the Epstein files has exposed deeper tensions within conservative politics over loyalty, transparency and the direction of the Republican Party heading into future election cycles. What began as a push for disclosure regarding a notorious criminal case has increasingly evolved into a broader power struggle between establishment figures and lawmakers who see themselves as insurgents challenging entrenched political interests.
At the same time, the increasingly bitter rhetoric surrounding the dispute reflects a growing atmosphere of distrust and internal warfare inside American politics, where even former allies now openly accuse one another of betrayal and retaliation.
[READ MORE: Mark Fuhrman, Central Figure in O.J. Simpson Trial and Veteran Detective, Dies at 74]
