Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Brendan Rascius

MTG and Tucker Carlson announce new ‘movement’ in photo packed with MAGA renegades

Marjorie Taylor Greene announced a new political “movement” with a group of MAGA stalwarts who have broken with President Donald Trump over the ongoing Iran war.

On August 1, the former Georgia Republican posted a photo on X depicting her alongside media personality Tucker Carlson, Rep. Thomas Massie and Joe Kent, the former director of the National Counterterrorism Center. Also pictured was conservative journalist Brian Glenn, whom Greene married in Las Vegas on Tuesday.

“We said no more foreign wars and we meant it and supported Donald Trump because he made that promise,” Greene wrote. “But he’s betrayed us all. Our commitment is America First for all Americans, right, left, and center,” she continued.”

“The movement has begun,” she added.

Greene, who resigned from Congress in January, had previously discussed the possibility of forming a new political party after growing “fed up” with Republicans.

“I think there’s a group of us that if we decide to align, we could launch a true America-focused party that doesn’t fall into the traps of Democrats or Republicans, but could align some serious players from the right and the left,” she told Piers Morgan on June 30.

Carlson, a former Fox News host turned popular podcaster, echoed this sentiment in July, telling The Columbia Journalism Review: “There’s going to be a third party, and I’m going to do everything I can to bring that about.”

Greene and Massie, who lost his Kentucky primary earlier this year to a Trump-backed rival, also vacationed together in May, where they discussed “the future of politics in America.”

Greene, Massie, Kent and Carlson all turned against Trump over the Iran war, launched in February, arguing that it amounted to a betrayal of his campaign promise to end “forever wars.”

Carlson called the war “disgusting and evil,” while Kent — who served as Trump’s counterterrorism chief — resigned in March over his opposition to the conflict.

“I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Kent wrote in a letter posted to X. “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.”

In addition to opposing Trump over the Iran war, Greene and Massie also broke with the Republican president over the Epstein files, voting to force the Department of Justice to release all of its files on Jeffrey Epstein (Getty)
In addition to opposing Trump over the Iran war, Greene and Massie also broke with the Republican president over the Epstein files, voting to force the Department of Justice to release all of its files on Jeffrey Epstein (Getty)

Greene, meanwhile, had already broken with Trump over the Epstein files by the time the war began. After Trump publicly attacked her, she said she would resign from Congress rather than “endure a hurtful and hateful primary.” Massie had also split with Trump over the Epstein files and lost his primary in May to retired Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein, a Trump loyalist. His current term ends in January.

In late July, Massie was among several Republicans who voted for a war powers resolution aimed at reining in Trump’s authority to wage the Iran war. The measure passed the House 214-208.

Trump has unleashed harsh attacks on the former MAGA allies who turned against him, calling Greene a “traitor,” Kent a “SLEAZEBAG,” Carlson a “Low IQ person” and Massie “Weak and Pathetic.”

In response to broader criticism of the war — which has led to the death of 18 U.S. service members and thousands of Iranians — Trump has said the conflict is necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

While multiple polls show that most Americans oppose a war with Iran, history suggests that a third party would face steep odds of success. No third-party candidate has won the presidency in the modern era, and only a small number of lawmakers in Congress are not aligned with either major party.

The Independent has contacted the White House for comment.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.