Is Marjorie Taylor Greene an 'Enemy of the State' in Ukraine? What We Know

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene claimed Monday that she is an "enemy of the state" in the eyes of the Ukrainian government, though officials tell Newsweek that no such list exists.

Greene, a Republican lawmaker from Georgia, has been one of the most outspoken voices in Congress against providing continued military and foreign aid to Ukraine in its two-plus-year war with Russia. That has included chastising her own party as "useless."

Last, a total of 46 House Republicans voted in favor of an amendment introduced by Greene that would strike over "$433 million in NATO funding" from a Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations bill, saying that the U.S. is "paying more than its fair share." The motion scrutinized other NATO allies for not contributing 2 percent of their GDP on defense while acknowledging illegal immigration at the southern border. The measure failed in a vote.

In a June 10 post on X, formerly Twitter, Greene touted "not giving a single penny to Ukraine" and said a so-called enemies list reinforces her opposition to funding the Eastern European nation.

Her post includes an image that appears to show her name on a list, blaming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky while admonishing him as a leader and calling him the real "enemy."

"Zelenskyy's thug regime has deemed me an Enemy of the State, and for good reason," Greene wrote. "Zelenskyy has never had one single American vote for him. Not only am I a Ukrainian Enemy of the State, but I'm banned from Russia.

"Zelenskyy is a thug who doesn't deserve a single American tax dollar. All they care about is taking our money and our weapons. Then they put elected members of Congress like me on their state KILL list. Zelenskyy is the real enemy of democracy."

Newsweek reached out to Greene's office via email for comment.

When asked about the list and whether it was funded or sponsored by the Ukrainian government, a Ukrainian official told Newsweek that no such list exists.

A new list that has been posted online, however, was compiled by a group of independent Ukrainian data journalists on a website called TEXTY.

The website states: "We create data journalism projects and work in traditional journalistic genres: from lengthy reports to short messages. We have a Ukrainian view of the world. We try to study the issue we write about as much as possible and show what is really happening, and not just publish different points of view."

On June 6, TEXTY just released a report titled, "Roller Coaster: From Trumpists to Communists. The forces in the U.S. impeding aid to Ukraine and how they do it." Nowhere is the post branded a "kill list."

The report has four authors who contributed to the project, said to have been funded exclusively by site readers and aimed at discovering "inconsistencies" in how U.S. politicians have approached the ongoing war—and, in some cases, flip-flopped back and forth in terms of pro-Ukraine sentiment including approving aid.

Roman Kulchynsky, editor-in-chief of the publication, told Newsweek via email that he and other researchers have been investigating Russian disinformation dating back to 2016—stressing that TEXTY is an independent outlet.

"We operate as an NGO [nongovernmental organization] and never take money from the Ukrainian government," Kulchynsky said. "Before and after the presidential election in 2019, we even wrote editorials expressing that Zelensky is a bad choice for this position, and now we are known in Ukraine as a media outlet that criticizes the government."

The newest report, he said, is based on "detecting Russian narratives and disinformation to understand how they circulate in the U.S." Support from the U.S. is crucial for the survival of Ukraine as a state and for his survival and that of his relatives, colleagues, and others, he added.

"I'll be honest: we decided to do this after watching very strange (from our point of view) debates in the [U.S.] Congress for aid for Ukraine," he said. "After six months of research, we completed a report. As responsible media, we decided to publish the evidence that confirms our conclusions. Because numerous individuals, organizations, and their quotes are involved, the best format to publish these facts is a table with links."

The list within the report includes 388 individuals and 76 organizations, ranging from politicians to political movements and groups, media and journalists, experts and think tanks.

The study analyzed "several thousand pieces of content mentioning the war in Ukraine" between November 2023 and April 2024, including articles, social media posts (mostly X), videos, and podcasts where Ukraine was mentioned.

"Texty.org.ua decided to research the reasons expressed by the media and expert communities contributing to political discordance within the decision-making establishment," the report says. "As a result, we identified a wide range of groups opposing support for Ukraine, from Trump supporters to communists, and explored the ecosystem of mutual support among those who hold this position."

Greene is joined on that list by other Republicans like Senators J.D. Vance and Rand Paul, and Representatives Matt Gaetz and Jim Jordan.

A little more than half the individuals in this sample are right wing, according to the report, while about one in eight are left-wing, and the remainder do not associate themselves with a specific ideological or political platform.

"The right-wing individuals are mostly politicians affiliated with the Trump wing of the Republican Party," it states.

Update 06/11/24, 8:29 a.m. ET: This story was updated with comment from Roman Kulchynsky.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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