Trump: 'Traitor' MTG 'Went Bad,' but Thanks for 'Her Service'

President Donald Trump recapped the messy Republican breakup with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who announced Friday night she will resign from Congress by Jan. 5.

"Marjorie 'Traitor' Brown, because of PLUMMETING Poll Numbers, and not wanting to face a Primary Challenger with a strong Trump Endorsement (where she would have no chance of winning!), has decided to call it 'quits,'" Trump wrote Saturday morning on Truth Social, changing her last name from Greene to Brown, due to "rot," as he said previously.

"Her relationship with the WORST Republican Congressman in decades, Tom Massie of Kentucky, also known as Rand Paul Jr. because he votes against the Republican Party (and really good legislation!), did not help her.

"For some reason, primarily that I refused to return her never ending barrage of phone calls, Marjorie went BAD.

"Nevertheless, I will always appreciate Marjorie, and thank her for her service to our Country! President DJT."

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.

Greene, in a more than 10-minute video posted online Friday night, explained her decision and said she did not 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 healthcare.

Trump branded her a "traitor" and "wacky" a week prior 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.

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."

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

In her video Friday, Greene said she had "always been despised in Washington, D.C., and just never fit in."

But 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.

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.

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 would not run for the Senate against incumbent Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., while attacking GOP donors and consultants who feared she could not win.

Greene's restlessness only intensified in July, when she announced she would not 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."

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

The Associated Press' messages left with House Speaker Mike Johnson's office were not immediately returned.

The AP contributed to this report.