Republican Senator Ted Cruz told the public that they should not pay attention to Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene because she is becoming “very liberal.”
Cruz made the comments during an appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box, referring to Greene’s recent criticism of Republican leadership and her pivot away from standard conservative positions.
Highlights
- Ted Cruz urged the public to ignore Marjorie Taylor Greene, calling her shift toward liberal views concerning.
- Greene criticized GOP leadership on the government shutdown and became the first Republican to label Israel's actions in Gaza a 'genocide.'
- Greene joined Democrats to push a vote to release Epstein files, showing bipartisan collaboration.
Greene, a strong supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, has recently criticized her own party’s handling of the ongoing government shutdown and condemned Israel’s alleged war crimes.
Ted Cruz told the public not to pay attention to Marjorie Taylor Greene because she is becoming "very liberal"
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She questioned House Speaker Mike Johnson for not providing a detailed Republican plan on affordable healthcare and chose not to solely blame the Democrats for the shutdown.
“Johnson said he’s got ideas and pages of policy ideas and committees of jurisdiction are working on it, but he refused to give one policy proposal to our GOP conference on our own conference call,” Greene wrote on X. “Apparently I have to go into a SCIF to find out the Republican healthcare plan!!!”
On Wednesday, Cruz advised the public to ignore Greene’s criticisms of the party.
“My advice is don’t spend much time worrying about what Marjorie is saying,” Cruz said.
“What I’ve found is that whenever an elected official decides that they are going to turn on Israel and hate Israel, you will very quickly see every other policy out of their mouth become very, very liberal,” Cruz added.
Image credits: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Greene became the first Republican in Congress to use the term “genocide” when describing Israel’s actions in Gaza earlier this year.
She publicly criticized the war in Gaza in July, echoing human rights groups to accuse Israel of committing genocide.
Greene later questioned the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, suggesting it should register as a foreign lobbyist.
“Israel is not hurting, and they’ve already proven that they are more than capable of not only defending themselves, but annihilating their enemies to the point of genocide,” Greene said on One America News Network in August. “And that’s what’s happening in Gaza.”
Greene became the first Republican to describe Israel's actions in Gaza as a "genocide"
Greene was also one of the four House Republicans to join the Democrats and sign a petition to force a vote to release the Epstein files.
She wrote on social media in September: “I’m committed to doing everything possible for the victims of Jeffrey Epstein. Including exposing the cabal of rich and powerful elites that enabled this.”
Cruz and other Republicans, including Trump and Senator Bernie Moreno, have pushed back on Greene’s comments.
Earlier this month, Trump reportedly called Republicans, asking, “What’s going on with Marjorie?”, confused by the congresswoman’s recent criticisms of the GOP, NBC News reported.
Image credits: The White House/Flickr
In an NBC News interview earlier in the month, Greene said: “I’m not some sort of blind slave to the president, and I don’t think anyone should be.”
Moreno told CNN that if Greene is passionate about healthcare reform, she should draft a bill rather than just criticize leadership.
“If this is something she‘s passionate about, put pen to paper, write a bill, present an option,” Moreno said. “Don‘t just criticize what other people are doing.”
Greene recently spoke about being a victim of misogyny within the Republican Party.
Greene has criticized the Republicans' handling of the shutdown and demanded transparency on the Epstein Files
Image credits: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
“There’s a lot of weak Republican men, and they’re more afraid of strong Republican women. So they always try to marginalize the strong Republican women that actually want to do something and actually want to achieve,” she said in a Washington Post interview published earlier this month.
Cruz’s comments on Greene come as the government shutdown entered its 30th day, with congressional leaders continuing negotiations.
Democrats have insisted on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies before agreeing to a federal budget, and Republicans say those discussions can take place once the government has been funded.