Rep. Jackson said, “It’s a miracle,” and vows to work with ex-MAGA Greene
Released from Northwestern Hospital on Monday, November 24th, after nearly two weeks with progressive supranuclear palsy, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. defied medical predictions by walking on his own, his son, Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-1st), told the Chicago Crusader.
“My dad is doing much better,” he said, noting that the doctors had one thing to say, but the Lord had something else to say. The same Lord who took him out of the IV/ICU and into a hospital room has also given him, praise God, the strength to walk again. I am grateful for that.
“I am grateful for all of the prayers that went all around the world. Prayers do matter,” Jackson said. “God can answer prayers.”
In a family statement, the Jacksons said, “Our family would like to thank the countless friends and supporters who have reached out, visited, and prayed for our father.
“We bear witness to the fact that prayer works and would also like to thank the professional, caring and amazing medical and security staff at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
We humbly ask for your continued prayers throughout this precious time,” said attorney Yusef Jackson, Rev. Jackson’s son, who is COO of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition.
Asked about the miracle he mentioned, Jackson explained, “Just to see my father. The doctors thought his health was declining, but his health has bounced back, going in the right direction. ‘The tears and heartaches have been replaced with joy.”
He said that what his family has endured has been replaced by their “hearts full of hope and to see his body heal itself. I got to attribute that to prayers. It wasn’t the medicine.”
On Saturday, November 22nd, Rep. Jackson who spoke at the weekly Rainbow PUSH Coalition broadcast, later told the Chicago Crusader, he will be working with former Trump supporter Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, (R-GA) who last week announced she is resigning from Congress on January 5, 2026, because the president called her a “traitor” for orchestrating a vote to open up the scandalous Epstein files.
Greene, who had criticized the president on his health care, foreign affairs and his fight to keep the Epstein files from public airing, has fallen from grace with Trump after she posted on X Friday, November 21st, that she is resigning from Congress.
Her standing up in favor of the women, some of whom were allegedly “raped at age 14, trafficked and used by the rich and powerful men should not result in me being called a traitor and threatened by the president of the United States, whom I fought for,” she said in a video.
Rep. Jackson praised Greene, saying she has had a “colorful… history as it relates to our community, but where she stands right now, I think, is the most critical in her public life. She’s on the right side of history in confronting President Donald Trump.
“You do not go along, come along with the Republican establishment that was trying to perpetuate a pedophile ring. She took the courageous and the right stand by saying that no woman or person should be beneath the law, and no man, no matter how wealthy, should be put above the law.
“At a tremendous sacrifice and personal danger to herself, she put the country before her individual issue and her individual concerns,” said Jackson, referring to her casting the deciding votes to open the Epstein files. “That is something that offers an enormous level of justice for the entire community.
“Thousands of women were sent to this island where they were molested, exploited, and pimped out,” said Jackson, referring to Epstein’s 70-acre private island, called “Little St. James, in the Caribbean, even though he had been convicted as a sex offender at the time, according to Vanity Fair.
“We can put an end to this pedophilia in our society. She was very courageous in doing so,” Jackson said of Greene. “She also has taken the right stance on no more forever wars. She has taken a courageous stand on saying we should stop bombing fishing boats off the coasts of Venezuela. She does not want to see the United States of America have aggression in Nigeria.
“She’s taken a courageous stance on a ceasefire by saying she does not want to see children killed. She wants to re-prioritize having domestic policies, including in Rome, Georgia. She has spoken truth to power,” said. Jackson.
Asked if he will be working with Greene, Rep. Jackson said, “As long as she is in Congress, I will share a great level of decorum with her. We are cordial colleagues. I would like to see her spending more time on her new agenda because there is much work to be done.”
Jackson praised Greene for not being like most of her Republican colleagues, he says, who are “rolling over” and bowing to Trump’s demands.
“She’s making a courageous stand. We need some more people to recognize that there are co-equal branches of government and stand up to the president when he’s wrong,” Jackson said.
Saying reaching over to the opposite side of the political aisle “is the nature of the business,” Jackson said he doesn’t have a permanent interest or disagreement with anyone in Congress. Sometimes you can get a straight lick with a crooked stick.”
Jackson said he is willing to stand with Greene fighting pedophiles, perpetual wars, and programs so children can finish school…. “I am proud to say she is a colleague, and I appreciate her stance on these crucial issues.”
Asked if he read the Epstein emails, Rep. Jackson said he hadn’t. He is not on the Oversight Committee, which is spearheading this investigation. “They are all sickening…disgusting. This went on for a quarter of a century. It went across state lines, international lines, from royal palaces to presidential suites, the wealthiest people in technology and law, Harvard University, professors, and the Secretary of the Treasury.
“Wherever it is, let’s just root it out. Let’s not put any woman beneath the law. Let’s not put any man above the law, and for the sake of these women, these survivors, let’s make sure they have a level of justice,” Jackson said.
He said Black and Hispanic girls are leading in sex trafficking including young Black girls who are coming out of foster homes are leading in sex trafficking.
“One abused child can mess up your home…your classroom…your community…your country. We need to get rid of child abuse in the United States of America, and everyone should stand for that,” he said.
Jackson is working on a bill that will call for an end to sex trafficking but he said in this Trump era the president does not want to talk about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion or women issues, or disparate treatment of researching and cataloguing this.
“We have to unveil this and go to the depth of the problem to show that African American girls are the biggest victims on a daily basis of this sort of crime,” said Jackson.
He named a litany of women Trump had disrespected, including publicly cursing and calling them names such as “piggy,” Trump called one reporter when asked about the Epstein files.
Rep. Jackson called on both female and male Republicans to “stand up to the president. We are a coequal branch of government. The president is wrong, and his rhetoric is going to get somebody hurt.
“For god’s sake, let’s stop it. We can agree to disagree, but we cannot continue in this manner. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt, but his language is going to fuel some people to take drastic measures.
“He is creating a level of hostility and violence, and for those who don’t speak up, I would say your hands will have blood on them as well,” Jackson predicted.
Asked about Trump’s public cursing while cameras are rolling, Jackson said, “He does it consistently. I think he’s injured. He’s wounded. He’s embarrassed by these tapes, and being as narcissistic as he is, he’s going to lash out.
“He’s on that level. I pray that he grows in grace, in sympathy, and in empathy. He is the most powerful person on planet earth….”
Jackson hopes that Trump will have a moment of reconciliation. I pray that those close to him can talk some sense into him, because he can do a lot of damage to the presidency and to the United States.
Asked about Trump demanding Ukraine cede land to Russia, Ukrainian President Zelensky said the land was “stolen” from the country, Jackson said, “It’s not a negotiation. He’s telling the people of Ukraine to simply throw in your flag and cede your land. That is not negotiations.
That is capitulation. That’s surrendering. On behalf of the Ukrainian people, I hope they continue to stay strong and to continue to fight for their sovereignty. I do not think they should have to be put in a position of fighting or surrendering their dignity or being a victim of destruction.”
Asked about Trump demanding that recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program reapply for their benefits, Jackson said, “That is a disaster. The system works. They’ve gone through those cuts. Many of the agencies have had a freeze. Many of these people in these agencies have fulfilled their prior obligations.
“With the chaos he is causing, it is going to cause a lot of hurt.” Rep. Jackson said with this change, some seniors, those with disabilities or who live alone, won’t get the message and will get cut off from the SNAP system.
“This is economic violence,” said Jackson to the 42 million people who rely on this program, especially women with children. “There are long-term ramifications.” He said with tariffs causing a rise in food prices, people are suffering, and all Trump talks about is “money, money, money, never about people and their needs,” said Jackson. “He’s balancing the budget off the backs of the poor. I hope in this Holy season, in this Christmas season, an angel will touch his shoulder…so that he too can be saved.”
Rep. Jackson said he appreciated former President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary Clinton, visiting his father at Northwestern Hospital on Friday, November 21st.