Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene slammed the Republican Party on Tuesday night, May 19, after longtime ally Rep. Thomas Massie lost his Kentucky primary, claiming the push to release Jeffrey Epstein’s files sealed his fate.
Massie, a 14-year incumbent, conceded to Trump-backed challenger Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL and dairy farmer.
The race drew more than $30 million in spending, making it the most expensive House primary in U.S. history.
Outside groups, including pro-Israel organizations and Trump-aligned PACs, poured money into the effort to unseat him.
Greene Pops Up With Fresh Allegations
In a lengthy post on X shortly after the results came in, Greene praised Massie as “a giant among weak pathetic men” and tied his defeat directly to their joint work on the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
“Releasing the Epstein files was our demise,” she wrote. “But it was worth every single bit because now everyone knows the truth. You are ruled by the Epstein class that cares nothing about you, and your elected leaders are bought and controlled by a foreign lobby.”
The law was passed by a landslide vote in Congress in late 2025 and signed into law by President Trump.
The law mandated the Justice Department declassify millions of pages of documents, videos, and images related to Epstein’s investigations.
Massie and Greene were vocal backers of the effort, which faced quiet resistance from some GOP leaders.
Massie himself acknowledged the brutal fight in his concession speech. He called the contest the most expensive congressional primary ever and said he had reached out to Gallrein. “We’ve been honorable the whole time,” he added.
Greene went further, declaring the traditional Republican Party finished. “Tonight, the future of the Republican Party was destroyed,” she said.
She predicted a “Real America First Movement” would rise, led by younger voters fed up with the old guard. “Let us pray that we have a country left by the time these creatures are gone,” she wrote.
Massie has been a long-time critic of foreign aid, including packages for Israel and Ukraine, and has advocated for spending cuts that pit him against party leadership.
Trump publicly called him “the worst congressman in the history of our country” and sent top surrogates to campaign against him in the final days.
Gallrein ran as a loyal Trump supporter and benefited from heavy advertising. Early returns showed him pulling ahead comfortably in the solidly Republican district north of Cincinnati.
Mixed Reactions
Some America First accounts cheered Greene’s message and called the loss proof that money and foreign influence decide elections.
Others accused her and Massie of turning on Trump and damaging the party from within. A few called the Epstein angle a distraction from Massie’s votes against key Trump priorities.
Massie never shied from controversy as he often opposed most foreign aid bills, questioned big spending packages, and often stood alone on procedural votes.
Supporters saw him as one of the last true fiscal conservatives in Congress, while critics, including President Trump and White House officials, called him unreliable and a show horse who hurt Republican unity.
Also Read: Trump Turns on Lauren Boebert: Calls Her ‘Weak-Minded,’ Withdraws Endorsement Over Massie Support
The release of the Epstein files last winter delivered thousands of documents, but no major bombshells that changed the public picture of Epstein’s network.
Still, the process fed years of online speculation about powerful people shielding themselves from scrutiny.
Greene described the whole fight in stark terms, noting that Massie’s loss wasn’t just one primary defeat; it marked the end of an era for independent voices inside the GOP.
She suggested newer, angrier generations would replace them.
Meanwhile, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung celebrated Massie’s defeat by sending a stern warning to Republicans never to doubt President Trump or his political power.
