Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) on Wednesday appeared to harden her line against the White House, signaling the widening gulf between President Donald Trump and leading political figures who claim to embody the Make America Great Again movement he started.
The Georgia lawmaker rebuked the president’s decision to allow 600,000 students from China to study at U.S colleges and universities as part of a broader trade deal the United States made with Beijing. She also appeared to criticize Trump’s recent meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa, arguing he is a “terrorist.”
Once a noisy supporter of Trump, Greene has in recent months put distance between herself and the president. Similar to commentators like Tucker Carlson, Greene has portrayed herself as a true purveyor of MAGA values, arguing that much of Trump’s policy, particularly around foreign affairs, is out of touch with the America First movement he sparked.
This week, Greene refused to back away from her increasingly antagonistic approach toward the White House, despite Trump’s recent comments that she has “lost her way,” and assertion that “I know what MAGA wants better than anybody else” because “MAGA was my idea.”
“This is my way and there is no other way to be,” Greene said, after denying Tuesday that she had “lost” her way in comments to The Hill.
Greene’s latest statement comes as she seemingly embraced an increasingly isolationist worldview that equates “America First” with “America Only.” Since August, the congresswoman’s use of the phrase has skyrocketed on X.
“I’m America First. Maybe even America only,” she said then. “I don’t care if you call me an isolationist. America is our home. And it’s falling apart.”
Ingraham: You said as many as 600,000 Chinese students could come to the US. Why is that a pro-maga position…
Trump: MAGA was my idea. It was nobody else’s idea. I know better than anybody else what Maga wants pic.twitter.com/VECDwAqG8o pic.twitter.com/ne7jjjOv0H
— Acyn (@Acyn) November 11, 2025
Greene has slammed the Trump administration, including Vice President JD Vance, for working to negotiate the end of wars in a host of countries and has particularly criticized the U.S. alliance with Israel, urging the White House to defund the nation.
“Why did he go to Israel this week?” Greene said of Vance’s recent trip during an interview on Carlson’s podcast last month. “Why is he over there? He should be here.… America voted for America First, and they meant it, and right now they’re extremely angry.… They’re really, really mad. They’re stepping back, they’re taking a hard look, and they’re starting to be angry and they’re starting to be vocal about it.”
Trump’s approach to America First has been far more pragmatic. His administration has argued that remaining engaged with other countries and negotiating for peace in Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, and other conflicts is necessary to avoid a scenario where the U.S. is dragged into a costly and deadly World War III.
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And pursuing stabilized relationships with other nations, including morally questionable leaders in Syria and China, could also be in the U.S.’s best interests economically, boosting the country’s wealth by “trillions,” Trump has suggested, pushing back against rhetoric from people such as Greene that he should ban Chinese students from U.S. universities.
“You know, the students pay more than double when they come in from most foreign countries. I want to see our school system thrive,” the president said this week. “And it’s not that I want them, but I view it as a business. We have millions and millions of people also. I want to get along with countries, if possible, people are shocked.… I stopped eight wars in the last nine months. I don’t want to be in wars. If I am in a war, we’re going to win the thing. It’ll be violent. I don’t want to be in wars.”