White House Flagged MTG to Secret Service After Protesters Crashed Trump Dinner, Sources Say

The relationship between President Trump and former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene deteriorated so sharply that the White House alerted the Secret Service over concerns Greene may have disclosed details of a surprise presidential dinner to protesters, according to two members of Trump’s team, Axios reported Friday.

The concerns stem from a tense incident last fall at Joe’s Seafood in Washington, where anti-war activists confronted Trump during an unannounced visit. The episode embarrassed the president and heightened security worries inside the White House, coming roughly a year after Trump narrowly escaped an assassination attempt.

Trump aides now view the Joe’s Seafood incident as the breaking point in his relationship with Greene, once a close ally who later became a vocal critic and left Congress this week.

Greene flatly denied the allegation, telling Axios that any claim she revealed Trump’s plans was “an absolute lie, a dangerous lie. I would never do that.” She said she suggested the restaurant but did not know when Trump planned to go.

According to Greene, only White House aides and the restaurant – a well-known lobbyist gathering spot near the White House at 15th and H Streets NW – were aware of the reservation. “The story you should be writing is why didn’t the Secret Service sweep the restaurant,” she said, adding that metal detectors should have been placed at the entrance.

It remains unclear whether the Secret Service is formally investigating Greene. The agency declined to comment, and Greene did not respond to questions about whether agents contacted her.

Trump’s visit to Joe’s on September 9, accompanied by Vice President Vance and several Cabinet members, was intended to highlight what the White House described as improved public safety in Washington following the deployment of National Guard troops.

Instead, activists affiliated with the liberal group Code Pink approached within feet of Trump’s table and shouted, “Free DC.! Free Palestine! Trump is the Hitler of our time!”

For weeks afterward, Trump aides tried to determine how the protesters learned of the dinner, which had not been shared with the media and was known only to a small circle. Trump later called for an investigation into Code Pink, saying, “they should be put in jail.”

Following the confrontation, Trump’s team met with Secret Service leadership to review the incident and reassess the president’s security.

Code Pink spokesperson Melissa Garriga dismissed the suggestion that Greene tipped off the group. “That absolutely did not happen, to the point it is comical,” Garriga told Axios.

White House officials did not offer direct evidence tying Greene to the protesters but said their suspicions were based on two factors.

First, aides pointed to Greene’s role in recommending Joe’s Seafood. After doing so, officials say Greene repeatedly contacted White House staff on the day of the dinner to confirm Trump would attend. Sources said that after Trump learned of the calls, he phoned Greene shortly before leaving the White House and confirmed the visit.

Greene, who was known to frequent the restaurant, did not appear at Joe’s while Trump and his delegation were there — a detail that some aides found unusual.

Second, officials cited Greene’s relationship with Code Pink. White House aides noted her friendship with the group’s co-founder, Medea Benjamin, and said Greene and the organization share opposition to U.S. military aid to Ukraine and Israel.

Benjamin previously praised Greene for opposing Trump’s bombing of nuclear sites in Iran and for advocating cuts to foreign aid within the Pentagon’s budget. Benjamin and other Code Pink members also met with Greene after she announced in November that she would resign from Congress midway through her third term.

“I have enjoyed a friendship with Medea for a few years now, even though politics says that’s not allowed,” Greene said at the time.

According to Trump allies, the rift between the president and Greene began months earlier. Last spring, Trump sent Greene internal polling showing she would likely lose a potential Senate race to a Democrat. Trump has said he shared the data to inform her, not to discourage a run.

In the weeks that followed, allies said Greene’s public criticism of Trump increased, including accusations that he had abandoned “America First” principles and opposition to his “big, beautiful” tax and spending bill.

Trump privately expressed frustration, telling confidants he did not recognize the once-loyal ally.

From Greene’s perspective, however, she felt marginalized early in Trump’s second administration. A source familiar with her thinking said Greene believed Trump’s inner circle dismissed her advice and ignored her outreach despite years of loyalty to the president.