Marjorie Taylor Greene recently said that President Donald Trump was the person who “fought the hardest” to keep the Jeffrey Epstein files from going public. This is a shocking statement, especially coming from someone who used to be one of the president’s strongest supporters in Washington, D.C.
According to Mediaite, Greene made this claim during an appearance on Owen Shroyer’s podcast. She suggested the effort to block the documents related to the convicted child sex predator came directly from the top.
She spoke directly about where the pressure to block the release came from. “I know a lot of people have a hard time with that, but that is the truth. He fought the hardest. To stop these files from being released,” Greene stated.
Trump’s handling of Epstein files created major political problems
In Greene’s opinion, the president’s biggest political mistake was repeatedly calling the discussion of the Epstein files a “Democratic hoax.” She believes trying to dismiss the entire thing as political theater created a massive political problem that eventually forced the president’s hand.
Greene was actually one of the Republicans who supported the legislation that eventually forced the Department of Justice to release the documents. She said getting that bill passed was a huge challenge because of resistance from within her own party’s leadership.
She pointed out that Speaker Mike Johnson initially refused to bring the bill to the floor for a vote. Because of that refusal, Greene, along with other Republicans like Thomas Massie, Nancy Mace, and Lauren Boebert, had to join forces with every single Democrat just to get the measure passed. The administration has faced criticism over how Trump-era policies affected Americans in other areas as well.
Greene explained that the president only signed the bill because he was politically forced to do so. “The only reason that [Trump] signed our bill that we passed in the House was because he had to. It became a massive political problem,” she said.
Greene also expressed concern about the current handling of the files by the Department of Justice. She suggests that Attorney General Pam Bondi is still taking direct orders from the White House regarding the ongoing releases and any potential criminal investigations.
“Pam Bondi, she serves at the pleasure of the president and his administration and those there are telling her, here’s who you can prosecute, no, don’t do this,” Greene said about the DOJ’s process. This critical stance on Epstein, along with other issues like healthcare, came just before Greene announced she would be resigning from Congress. At the time of her departure, she cited growing tensions with President Trump.
She noted she was stepping away to avoid an aggressive primary challenge from the president, despite having once been one of his most powerful advocates in Washington, D.C. Trump has recently made headlines for his calls for Republican control ahead of upcoming elections.
Published: Feb 15, 2026 02:15 pm