'Sick and tired.' MTG calls Venezuela strike betrayal of MAGA
- - 'Sick and tired.' MTG calls Venezuela strike betrayal of MAGA
Karissa Waddick, USA TODAY January 5, 2026 at 1:57 AM
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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, blasted President Donald Trump’s attack on Venezuela and removal of its leader, President Nicolás Maduro, describing it as a sharp departure from his "America first" campaign promise.
Greene, who earlier this year had a public falling out with Trump, criticized the military move as unaligned with Trump’s vow during the 2024 presidential election to end the United States' involvement in foreign conflicts.
While Greene said she didn’t support Maduro’s leadership and was "happy" for the people of Venezuela, she expressed doubt that Maduro’s capture was related to narco-terrorism and the flow of drugs, as Trump has suggested.
America First? What Trump's startling arrest of Maduro tells us.
1 / 26US bombs targets in Venezuela and captures Nicolás Maduro, Trump saysPicture of fire at Fuerte Tiuna, Venezuela's largest military complex, after a series of explosions in Caracas on January 3, 2026. Loud explosions, accompanied by sounds resembling aircraft flyovers, were heard in Caracas around 2:00 am on January 3.
Speaking to NBC’s "Meet the Press," Greene argued that if Trump cared about drug trafficking, he’d be focusing on other entities, including Mexican cartels.
"This is the same Washington playbook that we are so sick and tired of that doesn't serve the American people, that actually serves the big corporations, the banks, and the oil executives," Greene said on "Meet the Press". "My understanding of America first is strictly for the American people."
Earlier this year, Greene announced plans to resign from Congress after a feud with Trump over the release of documents pertaining to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and airstrikes on Venezuelan boats Trump alleged were carrying drugs. She will serve her last day in office Jan. 5.
But her comments reflect a growing chasm in Congress, including among some Republican lawmakers, over the president’s actions in Venezuela.
Oil interests in Venezuela
Trump, during a press conference, defended the attack as part of his America First agenda, arguing that he wanted to protect oil interests in Venezuela.
"We want to surround ourselves with good neighbors. We want to surround ourselves with stability. We want to surround ourselves with energy," Trump told reporters. "We have tremendous energy in that country. It's very important that we protect it. We need that for ourselves, we need that for the world."
Venezuela has the largest oil reserves of any country worldwide. But the reserves have been almost completely off limits to American oil giants since Venezuela placed them in the hands of a state-run company in the mid-1970s. Chevron is the only American oil company that has been allowed to operate in Venezuela.
Trump suggested that Maduro’s capture would open Venezuela’s reserves to major oil and gas companies in the United States.
launched a military operation in Venezuela. See the damage, beginning here with vehicles and equipment at Fort Tiuna after the U.S. strikes, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 3, 2026.
" style=padding-bottom:56%>Satellite imagery shows a closer view of destroyed areas after the United States launched a military operation in Venezuela. See the damage, beginning here with vehicles and equipment at Fort Tiuna after the U.S. strikes, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 3, 2026.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/VbvWwWI1tMJkufjKFm_Zwg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD03NzY-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/11e295a5dd1805f62ef2b10d228bd3fd class=caas-img data-headline="Satellite photos shows Venezuela before and after US strikes" data-caption="
Satellite imagery shows a closer view of destroyed areas after the United States launched a military operation in Venezuela. See the damage, beginning here with vehicles and equipment at Fort Tiuna after the U.S. strikes, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 3, 2026.
">Satellite imagery shows a closer view of destroyed areas after the United States launched a military operation in Venezuela. See the damage, beginning here with vehicles and equipment at Fort Tiuna after the U.S. strikes, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 3, 2026.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/VbvWwWI1tMJkufjKFm_Zwg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD03NzY-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/11e295a5dd1805f62ef2b10d228bd3fd class=caas-img>
1 / 10Satellite photos shows Venezuela before and after US strikes
Satellite imagery shows a closer view of destroyed areas after the United States launched a military operation in Venezuela. See the damage, beginning here with vehicles and equipment at Fort Tiuna after the U.S. strikes, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 3, 2026.
"We're going to rebuild the oil infrastructure, which will cost billions of dollars," Trump said. The cost, he said, will be "paid for by the oil companies directly," but they will be "reimbursed."
Greene, Democrats and some fellow disgruntled Republicans have questioned the president’s motives, and floated concerns about the extent to which an American president can order military action without congressional authorization.
"We don't consider Venezuela our neighborhood. Our neighborhood is right here in the 50 United States, not in the Southern Hemisphere," she said in response to Trump’s comments on "Meet the Press."
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Kentucky, who has also feuded with Trump before, similarly questioned the president’s decision to take over Venezuela.
"25 page indictment but no mention of fentanyl or stolen oil," Massie said in a post on X, referring to the Justice Department’s indictment of Maduro.
Other Republicans have staunchly defended Trump’s military campaign as pro-American.
"President Trump is putting American lives first, succeeding where others have failed, and under his leadership the United States will no longer allow criminal regimes to profit from wreaking havoc and destruction on our country," House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, said in an X post.
Trump’s feud with MTG
Preparing to soon leave Congress, Greene on Jan. 4 addressed her monthslong feud with Trump, a once close ally, who called her "wacky" and a "traitor."
1 / 42Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and her career in photosRep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), speak to members of the press while exiting the U.S. Capitol after introducing a motion to vacate on the floor of the House of Representatives seeking to remove Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) from his leadership position May 8, 2024 in Washington, DC. The House voted 359 to 43 to table the motion to vacate.
She alleged the president began to lash out at her after she began pushing for the Department of Justice to release federal files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier accused of trafficking hundreds of underage girls.
The Justice Department began to release thousands of pages of the files in late December.
"Demanding transparency for that should not lead to the president, who I helped get elected and supported far more than pretty much any Republican in Washington, it should not have led to him calling me a traitor," Greene said Jan. 4. "That is absolutely unacceptable."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MTG says Trump broke 'America First' promise in Venezuela
Source: “AOL Breaking”
