{"id":50,"date":"2026-05-24T20:37:39","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T20:37:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=50"},"modified":"2026-05-24T20:37:39","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T20:37:39","slug":"trumps-influence-on-gop-primaries-spurs-pretty-sour-feelings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=50","title":{"rendered":"Trump’s influence on GOP primaries spurs ‘pretty sour’ feelings"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The relationship between some Republicans and President Donald Trump could be taking a \u201cpretty sour\u201d turn as some GOP lawmakers primaried out of their congressional seats by White House-backed candidates explore a newfound freedom to vote their minds.<\/p>\n

Read more Will the House ban staff from prediction markets? These members aren\u2019t waiting<\/a><\/p>\n

That bodes poorly for Republicans\u2019 efforts to unify and maintain their thin majority in Congress in the months to come, let alone pass the party\u2019s key legislative priorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is May 19,\u201d said Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who described the sour vibes Tuesday after Sen. Bill Cassidy voted with Democrats on a key war powers measure. Cassidy lost his primary to a Trump-endorsed candidate Saturday.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are still many, many weeks, many months to go before the election, and this president is going to have to continue to deal and work with and partner with or battle with this group of lawmakers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Throughout the primary season, Trump has been slowly picking off sitting GOP lawmakers who he views as insufficiently loyal.<\/p>\n

The litmus test has been wide-ranging: For Cassidy, R-La., it was his vote to impeach Trump in 2021 that spelled his doom \u2014 a decision he has defended in recent days.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., it was his bipartisan work to make public the Epstein files as well as other Democrat-aligned votes on war powers and tariffs. Massie lost his primary Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo not ever doubt President Trump and his political power,\u2019\u2019 White House Communications Director Steven Cheung posted on social media. \u201cFuck around, find out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who has already taken an \u201cunleashed\u201d approach to voting, said he can be \u201cmore vocal\u201d after his retirement announcement. It begs the question \u2014 as more sitting Republicans are on the outs, will they also dare to defy Trump?<\/p>\n

Cassidy\u2019s newfound freedom was on display soon after he lost his primary election, when he voted with Democrats to advance a war powers resolution seeking to end the Iran war. <\/p>\n

It was the eighth such vote \u2014 and the first to succeed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018Complicated\u2019 dynamics<\/h2>\n

With Senate Republicans up against a narrow majority, and a number of lawmakers facing tight races in battleground states, GOP leadership recognizes the increasingly uphill battle that comes with advancing the Trump agenda.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters Wednesday that the chamber dynamics are \u201cslightly more complicated\u201d given Trump\u2019s pushback against incumbent senators, especially as the White House pushes hard to advance projects that are facing some skepticism.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A $1 billion Secret Service funding provision in the immigration enforcement budget reconciliation bill that\u2019s connected to the proposed White House ballroom, for example, is poised to fall out of the package after a lack of GOP support. Cassidy told reporters on Tuesday that he wouldn\u2019t vote for the legislation if the provision stayed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump also ruffled feathers when he endorsed firebrand candidate Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in that state\u2019s primary runoff next week.<\/p>\n

Cornyn, once the second-ranked Republican in the Senate, is widely viewed as one of a handful of dealmakers left in the chamber\u00a0 \u2014 but that willingness to work across the aisle meant he ran afoul of Trump.<\/p>\n

Senators from across the conference had thrown their support behind Cornyn in the primary, and mourned the blow to a longstanding senator in the wake of the endorsement Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more The 10 most vulnerable House members, less than 6 months from Election Day<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cNone of us control what the president does,\u201d Thune told reporters after the endorsement. \u201cHe made his decision about that. That doesn\u2019t change the way I feel, and I am certainly supportive of, will continue to be supportive of Sen. Cornyn and his reelection.\u201d<\/p>\n

Muted reaction<\/h2>\n

In the House, the reaction to Massie\u2019s loss was more muted among many rank-and-file members. That\u2019s in part because Massie was already a firebrand in his conference with a number of controversial votes on his record.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need people here who are not trying to carve out their own lane and do something that\u2019s destructive or counterproductive to the agenda, and that\u2019s what\u2019s happened,\u201d Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told reporters of Massie\u2019s primary loss.<\/p>\n

Many Republicans said Massie\u2019s loss was simply the manifestation of the will of the voters. But at least one member of the House GOP is taking issue with Trump\u2019s approach.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Retiring Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., warned of the prospect of \u201ca totally loyal party that\u2019s in the minority, that\u2019s maybe where we\u2019re headed,\u201d adding that room for disagreement is essential.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI would recommend the president win these debates with persuasion, not bullying,\u201d Bacon said. \u201cAmericans don\u2019t respond to all the bullying, and I don\u2019t think it works well for November.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., who has also been criticized by Trump, said the criticism \u201cdoesn\u2019t impact me at all. It doesn\u2019t hurt my feelings.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a very simple calculus on how to do this job. Every bill that comes to the floor is either a net positive or net negative for your district. They\u2019re your bosses. Nobody here is your boss, no party or no person here is your boss,\u201d he said, adding \u201cPeople can choose who to endorse. Everyone has the right to free speech. Nobody should treat that personally. I wish the dialogue was more respectful.\u201d<\/p>\n

A primary loss doesn\u2019t mean these ousted lawmakers will take their frustrations out on all GOP priorities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But the Trump administration has a laundry list of priorities ahead of the midterms, with items like a third reconciliation bill, election administration legislation and annual appropriations bills all on the docket.<\/p>\n

Cassidy, who is considered a pivotal vote on both the security funding provision and the war powers measure, said he is making decisions that are \u201crational,\u201d consistent with the Constitution and \u201cconsistent with what\u2019s good for my country.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s this narrative going around that Bill Cassidy is somehow doing things irrationally,\u201d Cassidy said. \u201cI just tell people to look at my rationale for what I\u2019m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, some lawmakers warn that the White House shouldn\u2019t take the votes of these departing members for granted.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe he doesn\u2019t think he needs us, but last I checked, the laws don\u2019t just appear on his desk to sign,\u201d Murkowski said. \u201cFunding just doesn\u2019t come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Appropriators approve Legislative Branch spending bill with GAO cuts<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The relationship between some Republicans and President Donald Trump could be taking a “pretty sour” turn as some GOP lawmakers primaried out of their congressional seats by White House-backed candidates explore a newfound freedom to vote their minds. 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