Donald Trump showcased his control over the Republican Party on Tuesday when voters in northern Kentucky ousted the independent-minded congressman Thomas Massie in favor of the US president's preferred candidate.
Ed Gallrein, a retired Navy SEAL and farmer who was recruited into the race by Trump, defeated the seven-term incumbent in the primary election for Kentucky's fourth congressional district. Trump's allies framed the contest as a litmus test for whether dissent can still exist within today's Republican Party.
"It's not a retribution campaign, it's a send a message campaign," a senior White House adviser told CNN. "This is basic political management of a party. You have to keep everybody on the reservation. Occasionally you have to shoot a hostage. The next one is Thomas Massie."
Massie, a libertarian-leaning conservative, had repeatedly clashed with Trump over issues such as military action against Iran, government spending, and the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. He had spent months insisting that Kentucky Republicans valued independence over loyalty. However, voters in the deeply conservative district ultimately appeared to prioritize allegiance to Trump.
The primary took place as voters in five other states—Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alabama, Oregon, and Idaho—went to the polls to decide their nominees for the November general election, marking the biggest primary night of the year so far.
Massie now joins the ranks of Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Jeff Flake, Mitt Romney, and other elected Republicans who were either defeated or chose to retire due to their party's alignment with Trump.
Over the weekend, Senator Bill Cassidy, who voted to convict Trump after the January 6 insurrection, lost a primary in Louisiana after the president backed challenger Julia Letlow.
Trump Endorses Ken Paxton in Texas Senate Primary
Donald Trump has endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the state's Republican primary, boosting his effort to unseat incumbent US Senator John Cornyn. The president praised Paxton, a hardliner who has positioned himself as a political warrior for Trump's Make America Great Again movement, as an "America First Patriot" in a social media post on Tuesday.
Georgia Runoffs Set for Governor and Senate Races
The Republican primary for Georgia governor will head to a June runoff, with Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones facing healthcare billionaire Rick Jackson. This outcome locked out Brad Raffensperger, the Georgia secretary of state and longtime Trump adversary, who finished a distant third. The Republican race to challenge US Senator Jon Ossoff also remains unresolved, while former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms won the Democratic primary for governor outright.
Pennsylvania Primaries Highlight Key Races
Primaries across Pennsylvania clarified key battlegrounds for the November midterm elections. Sixteen of the state's 17 US representatives are seeking re-election, and Democrats are focusing on four districts they view as essential pickup opportunities in their bid to retake the House.
Senate Advances Resolution to Curb Trump's Iran War Powers
The Senate voted on Tuesday to advance a war powers resolution aimed at forcing Donald Trump to end the war in Iran unless he receives congressional authorization. The 50-47 vote marked the first time the chamber has advanced the bill, the eighth attempt since the conflict began in February. Senator Bill Cassidy, who recently lost a primary in Louisiana after Trump endorsed his opponent, voted to take up the measure.
Other Developments
The US Justice Department quietly added a provision barring the IRS from auditing Donald Trump's tax returns on Tuesday, amending a widely criticized agreement that creates a secretive $1.776 billion fund to compensate allies of the president. Two teenage assailants responsible for a mass shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego, California, rushed toward the mosque "fully armored" with handguns and rifles, authorities said. The shooters had met and been radicalized online, according to the FBI. The NAACP launched a campaign urging Black athletes, their families, alumni, and fans to boycott athletic programs of public universities in states that "have moved to limit, weaken or erase Black voting representation." A federal judge in New York has banned US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from arresting immigrants in or around three federal courthouses in lower Manhattan. US Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson issued a rare public rebuke of the nation's highest court, declaring that it "can and should be better" after a series of controversial moves by its conservative supermajority.
