'Deciding his own fate': Trump and the GOP want to banish this one Republican

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures after signing the sweeping spending and tax legislation, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 4, 2025. REUTERSLeah Mill

Politico senior columnist Jonathan Martin reports House Republicans are aligning with President Donald Trump in wanting to remove Trump’s biggest Republican gadfly.

“If President Donald Trump’s top political priority next year is Republicans retaining control of Congress, his second-highest goal may be the defeat of his foremost GOP irritant: Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.),” said Martin.

Massie is a libertarian lone-wolfer who has not been afraid to push for the release of documents from the Jeffrey Epstein case, which Trump considers a “very hostile act.” Martin said Massie’s independent streak comes from the fact that he “has breezed through past primaries — and Trump’s lieutenants have yet to find a formidable challenger ahead of next year’s contest.”

“That could change in the coming weeks, however,” Martin added.

“High-level Republican officials are discussing an effort to nudge former state attorney general Daniel Cameron to drop his Senate bid and switch to challenge Massie in what may be the highest-profile House primary in the country next year,” Martin reports. “Cameron already lives in the district, previously won Trump’s support in his unsuccessful bid for governor two years ago and would have access to a near-bottomless supply of campaign funds provided by Trump’s allies.”

It may be hard to lure Cameron away to do battle with a House incumbent with a history of winning. Still, inside sources tell Martin that Cameron “has struggled to raise cash in his Senate bid” to replace outgoing senator Mitch McConnell and may welcome an alternative race this fall with the promise of Trump’s backing and his financial resources.

“I’m staying in the Senate race. I’m still leading in all the polling and will continue to do so,” Cameron told Martin, and he claims he’s not been approached to make the switch: “This is the first time I’ve heard this chatter.”

But if Trump does eventually corner him to scratch his Massie itch Cameron might have a hard time saying ‘no’, Martin said, “given the president’s clout within the party.”

Massie, meanwhile, remains one of the few Republicans to criticize Israel’s bombardment of Palestine, and he continues to court Trump’s animosity by being the loudest Republican to push for the release of the Epstein files. This week, Martin reports Massie even advised Trump — in the aftermath of the Charlie Kirk assassination — to “tone down down" his own divisive rhetoric.

At the end of June, Massie had $1.7 million in campaign cash on hand, but Martin predicts he will “almost certainly” get no financial help from House Republican leaders, “who’ve all but excommunicated him for his Trump criticism and opposition to party-line bills.”

“He is actively working against his team almost daily now and seems to enjoy that role,” House Speaker Mike Johnson told CNN’s Manu Raju. “So he is, you know, deciding his own fate.”

Read the Politico report at this link.

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