In a political firestorm that has reverberated through Washington and beyond, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has doubled down on her condemnation of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, labeling it a “genocide” and igniting fierce backlash from both the influential pro-Israel lobby AIPAC and Fox News host Mark Levin. The controversy, which unfolded over the first week of August 2025, reflects widening rifts within the Republican Party and the broader American political landscape over U.S. support for Israel amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Greene, never one to shy away from controversy, made her most pointed remarks during an appearance on One America News Network on August 7, 2025. Speaking with former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), Greene asserted: “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. And that’s what’s happening in Gaza.” According to coverage by Nexstar Media, Greene’s use of the term “genocide” to describe Israel’s military actions marks her as a rare dissenting voice among Republicans, most of whom have staunchly defended Israel’s conduct in the conflict.
The Georgia congresswoman’s comments came as the humanitarian situation in Gaza worsened. Reports from international aid organizations and press outlets have documented widespread hunger, malnutrition, and even starvation among Palestinians, adding fuel to the debate in Congress over continued U.S. military aid to Israel. Greene has sought to capitalize on this moment, sponsoring several resolutions in 2025 aimed at blocking further military assistance to the Israeli government.
Her outspoken criticism did not go unnoticed. On August 7, AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee—widely regarded as one of the most powerful lobbying groups in Washington—blasted Greene in a fundraising email. The message, as first reported by Al-Jazeera, accused Greene of joining the ranks of “anti-Israel” lawmakers, stating: “You expect anti-Israel smears from [Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.)] and [Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.)]. But now, Marjorie Taylor Greene has joined their ranks—spouting the same vile rhetoric and voting against the US-Israel alliance.”
AIPAC’s statement, later shared with The Hill, was unequivocal: “Anti-Israel extremists – of the right or the left – will not deter us in our participation in the democratic process to stand with Israel. It is an outrageous betrayal of American values and interests to abandon an ally fighting terrorist aggression.” The group’s fundraising email also highlighted Greene’s votes against U.S. support for Israel, further fueling the standoff.
Greene, in turn, took to social media to post a photo of a sign on her office door reading “no foreign lobbying,” and on Gaetz’s show, she declared that AIPAC should be required to register as a foreign lobbyist. She did not mince words: “The reason why AIPAC is attacking me is because I dared to tell the truth,” she said, doubling down on her criticism of both the lobby group and U.S. policy toward Israel.
Her accusations didn’t stop there. Greene charged AIPAC with breaking U.S. laws by taking members of Congress on fully paid trips to Israel, a practice she contends is inappropriate for a group representing foreign interests. The August congressional recess saw House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) travel to Israel on such an AIPAC-sponsored trip, where he dined with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—an episode that Greene cited as emblematic of the group’s influence.
But the firestorm wasn’t limited to Capitol Hill. On August 9, the controversy spilled over into conservative media, as Fox News host Mark Levin launched a blistering attack on Greene via X (formerly Twitter). Linking to a Mediaite article about far-right activist Laura Loomer’s criticism of Greene, Levin wrote: “Good for Laura further exposing kook MTG.” When a commenter suggested “MTG 2028!!”, Levin retorted, “Prison?”
Greene shot back, calling Levin a “raging psychopath” and accusing him of “lying about me, and EVEN WORSE in comments in his own post calling Christian’s ‘bigots’ and says I should go to prison!!! All because I am UNAPOLOGETICALLY AMERICA FIRST and UNAPOLOGETICALLY FIGHTING FOR MY CHILDREN’S GENERATION!!!” She further argued that Levin’s attacks were part of a coordinated effort with AIPAC to silence her opposition to U.S. foreign aid, stating, “Ever since I called for a recorded vote on my amendments to defund U.S. taxpayer money to Israel and other foreign countries/foreign aid, Mark Levin has rabidly been attacking me. And then the attacks started from AIPAC. Do you see the pattern?”
Levin, for his part, did not hold back. He described Greene as a “lunatic and Marxist-Islamist Jew-hater,” a “complete embarrassment,” and a “phony.” He lashed out at those defending her, using derogatory language and even making jokes at their expense. According to The Daily Beast, Levin dismissed the widespread famine in Gaza, stating that Israelis shouldn’t be “gold you need to feed the enemy while you defeat the enemy.”
The war of words has highlighted deep divisions not just between Democrats and Republicans, but within the GOP itself. While progressive Democrats like Tlaib and Omar have long criticized Israel’s actions, Greene stands out as one of the few Republicans willing to break party ranks. She has described Israel’s attacks on Gaza as a “genocide” and a “humanitarian crisis,” and has accused the Israeli government of “systematically cleansing” Palestinians from the land. In 2024, she even opposed a bill codifying certain definitions of antisemitism, citing what she claimed was biblical support for the statement that Jews killed Jesus.
Despite her isolation within her own party, Greene has shown no signs of backing down. Her standoff with AIPAC and Mark Levin has thrust her into the center of a heated debate over the future of U.S.-Israel relations, the influence of foreign lobbying, and the responsibilities of lawmakers to their constituents versus longstanding international alliances.
As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues and political tempers flare, the controversy surrounding Greene’s remarks and the intense backlash from powerful figures like AIPAC and Mark Levin underscore just how polarizing the issue has become. For now, Greene remains undeterred, insisting that her “America First” stance is a principled stand against what she sees as an unjust war and misplaced U.S. priorities.
The unfolding saga is a stark reminder of the complex, often combustible intersection of foreign policy, lobbying, and partisan politics in America’s capital—where one lawmaker’s dissent can set off a chain reaction felt across the political spectrum.
