The break is not just personal. Greene’s new language points to a wider fight over foreign wars, the Epstein files and whether Trump’s critics on the right can turn dissent into political power.
Marjorie Taylor Greene is escalating her fight with Donald Trump, saying Trump has betrayed her and teasing a major next step: a new “America First” movement with other MAGA figures who have broken with him. The move matters now because it turns a public feud into a possible organizing effort on Trump’s right flank.
Greene shared a photo on Aug. 1 with Tucker Carlson, Thomas Massie and Joe Kent, writing that they backed Trump when he promised “no more foreign wars,” but that “he’s betrayed us all.” Her closing line was the real signal: “The movement has begun.”
Greene’s break gets organized
For years, Greene was one of Trump’s loudest defenders. That history is what makes the new posture so striking. This is not a Democrat attacking Trump from across the aisle, or a longtime establishment Republican trying to reclaim the party. It is a former loyalist arguing that Trump broke faith with the voters who backed his “America First” pitch.
According to USA Today, Greene’s post drew major attention online, with 15,000 shares on X and nearly 10 million views. The image showed Greene seated at a table with Carlson, former Republican Rep. Thomas Massie and former Trump administration counterterrorism official Joe Kent.
The caption did more than criticize Trump. It presented the group as a political bloc. Greene wrote that their commitment is “America First for all Americans, right, left, and center,” a phrase that reaches beyond normal Republican messaging while still claiming the MAGA brand’s core language.
That is the tension at the center of the moment: Greene is not renouncing the movement she helped amplify. She is arguing that Trump has.
The next step she is teasing
The “major next step” Greene is teasing appears to be the formation of a new political movement, and possibly a new party. USA Today reported that Greene and Carlson have both talked about backing a new political party amid their criticism of Trump.
Carlson has gone further in recent remarks, saying in an interview that he is going to help build a third party, according to USA Today. His argument, as reported, is that Democrats and Republicans are too aligned on war in the Middle East and other issues, while government should focus on the welfare of its own people.
Greene has also said she is “in talks” about launching a new party. On “Piers Morgan Uncensored,” she said there is a group that could align around a “true America-focused party” that does not fall into what she described as the traps of either Democrats or Republicans. She also acknowledged that building a third party would be difficult.
That caveat matters. In American politics, a third party is much easier to announce than to sustain. Ballot access, fundraising, candidate recruitment and winner-take-all elections all favor the two major parties. But a faction does not need to win the White House to matter. It can pressure primaries, shape the agenda, split voters or force leaders to answer questions they would rather avoid.
Why Trump is the target
The immediate rupture is over foreign policy. Greene, Carlson, Massie and Kent have all criticized the Iran war, according to USA Today. Their complaint is that Trump’s actions conflict with his campaign promise to avoid foreign entanglements and keep the focus on “America First” policies.
Kent’s presence is notable because USA Today identified him as a former Trump administration counterterrorism official who resigned over concerns about the Iran war. That gives the group a mix of media reach, congressional experience and insider credentials.
The argument from Greene’s side is straightforward: Trump campaigned as an anti-war leader, won trust from voters who wanted a break from foreign intervention, and then betrayed that promise. That is the political meaning behind her line, “he’s betrayed us all.”
Trump’s defenders would likely see it differently. They may argue that presidents face threats and intelligence realities candidates do not, and that foreign policy cannot be reduced to a slogan. They may also see Greene and Carlson’s move as self-promotion by figures who thrive on conflict with party leadership.
Epstein files add another fracture
The Trump-Greene split is not only about Iran. USA Today reported that Greene and Massie also clashed with Trump over the Epstein files, pushing legislation to release government records connected to accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein despite Trump’s opposition.
That issue cuts differently than foreign policy. It taps into distrust of institutions, demands for transparency and suspicions among voters who already believe powerful people are protected from scrutiny. For Trump, resistance from former allies on that subject carries particular political risk because it comes from the same populist ecosystem that helped fuel his rise.
Greene has described the handling of the Epstein files in sharp terms before, and Massie has joined her in pushing for release of records. Their position lets them claim they are fighting secrecy while casting Trump as part of the system they once said he would challenge.
What remains unclear is whether this becomes a sustained legislative fight, a campaign message, or both. The answer will help determine whether Greene’s “movement” is an online flare-up or a vehicle with real political consequences.
A right-flank problem for Trump
The timing is awkward for Trump and the GOP. USA Today framed the gathering as part of growing blowback on the right as the party heads toward midterm elections that will decide control of Congress.
Poll numbers add to that pressure. USA Today cited a new AP-NORC poll conducted July 23-27 showing that 64% of Americans believe the Iran war has not been worthwhile. Most Republicans still approved of Trump’s handling of the war, but that support had slipped to 61%, down from 71% in June.
Those numbers do not show a party-wide revolt. They do suggest vulnerability. If even a slice of Trump’s base becomes disillusioned over war, transparency or broken promises, Republican candidates may face a more complicated turnout environment.
Trump has responded to MAGA dissenters by attacking them, according to USA Today. That may reinforce loyalty among his strongest supporters. It can also harden the opposition among critics who now define themselves as the true keepers of “America First.”
Movement or pressure campaign
The central question is whether Greene, Carlson, Massie and Kent are building a durable political alternative or simply creating leverage inside the Republican coalition. Those are different projects.
A third party would require organization, money and candidates willing to risk being blamed for Republican losses. A pressure campaign can be looser. It can use podcasts, social media, primaries and endorsements to punish candidates who back Trump on foreign policy or resist releasing Epstein-related records.
Greene’s wording leaves room for both. “The movement has begun” sounds expansive, but it does not yet define structure, leadership, ballot strategy or policy platform beyond anti-war and “America First” themes.
For now, the significance is that Trump is facing criticism from people who once helped sell his brand to the base. Whether Greene’s next step becomes a new party, a factional revolt or a media-driven pressure campaign, it signals that the fight over who owns MAGA is no longer just happening outside Trump’s coalition. It is happening inside it.
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