The far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., continued to break ranks in the Republican Party on Thursday, saying she “blames” the GOP’s congressional leadership for the government shutdown, accusing it of “ignoring” the rising costs of health insurance and refusing to hold a vote on releasing files related to Jeffrey Epstein.
In the midst of a nine-day government shutdown, Greene has been increasingly vocal in her disapproval of her own party, saying she is “not a slave” to President Donald Trump, and referring to herself as an “independent Republican.” She has also been one of the most prominent conservatives to call for the release of the Epstein files, a no-go for Trump and most other Republicans.
Appearing on CNN, the Georgia Republican did not place blame for the shutdown on Trump, but rather on congressional Republicans like Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. She accused them of giving “bad advice” to the president.
“I’m actually putting blame on the Speaker and Leader Thune in the Senate,” Greene said. “This should not be happening.”
Greene said the approval rating for Republicans in Congress was “low enough” and that the shutdown would continue to “drive” down those ratings. “We control the House, we control the Senate, we have the White House,” Greene said. “This doesn’t have to be a shutdown.”
Greene accused Republicans of “dangling” the threat of expiring Affordable Care Act tax credits for leverage. “I’m getting phone calls from people that are saying if the ACA tax credits expire, they aren’t gonna be able to have health insurance.”
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Continuing to push back against Johnson’s leadership, Greene said that Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva “does deserve” to be sworn in, despite the speaker’s refusal to do so. Grijalva would potentially be the final vote required on a petition to release the Epstein files.
“If it’s to avoid the discharge petition, why drag this out? That is going to have 218 signatures,” Greene said, blaming the shutdown for stopping further investigations by the House Oversight Committee.
“I genuinely don’t understand why there’s been any effort to hide this and prevent it from coming out,” Greene said of the Epstein files.
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