{"id":12836,"date":"2026-05-14T14:31:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/05\/14\/kentucky-republicans-love-trump-will-they-ignore-him-and-reelect-thomas-massie-ap-news\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T14:31:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:31:00","slug":"kentucky-republicans-love-trump-will-they-ignore-him-and-reelect-thomas-massie-ap-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/05\/14\/kentucky-republicans-love-trump-will-they-ignore-him-and-reelect-thomas-massie-ap-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Kentucky Republicans love Trump. Will they ignore him and reelect Thomas Massie? – AP News"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

COVINGTON, Ky. (AP) \u2014 Rep. Thomas Massie was stuck in Washington for a vote on Capitol Hill, so one of his supporters made the pitch for his campaign in a banquet hall packed with Republicans in northern Kentucky.<\/p>\n

The audience had just heard Ed Gallrein, who was drafted by President Donald Trump to run against Massie in next Tuesday\u2019s primary, describe the congressman as suffering from \u201ca severe case of Trump derangement syndrome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then Gex Williams, a state senator backing Massie, told the audience at the Lincoln Day Dinner not to worry about all that. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you are thinking that you can\u2019t be for President Trump and for Thomas Massie, you certainly can be,\u201d Williams said. <\/p>\n

Whether voters agree will determine if Massie\u2019s political career survives Trump\u2019s most aggressive attempt to purge the Republican Party of dissenters. The president already succeeded last week in dislodging several Indiana state senators<\/a><\/span> who opposed his redistricting plan, and he\u2019s supporting a primary challenge<\/a><\/span> against U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy in Louisiana on Saturday.<\/p>\n

But nothing compares to the vitriol against Massie, who Trump has called a \u201cmoron\u201d and a \u201cnut job\u201d who \u201cwill go down as the WORST Republican Congressman.\u201d Trump made an unusual trip to Kentucky<\/a><\/span> to campaign against Massie, and some of the president\u2019s top advisers are working to help Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL. <\/p>\n

Massie angered Trump by voting against his signature tax legislation over concerns of adding to the national debt, pushing for the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files and opposing his decision to go to war with Iran. His positions, Massie insists, reflect the America First promises Trump initially made on the campaign trail.<\/p>\n

In a Kentucky district where the president won by 35 points two years ago, Massie told The Associated Press that the upcoming primary is \u201cby far the most challenging reelection I\u2019ve ever faced.\u201d <\/p>\n

Party loyalty or ideological purity?<\/h2>\n

The race is playing out across Kentucky\u2019s 4th Congressional District, which sweeps northeast from the outskirts of Louisville along the Ohio River, through the suburbs south of Cincinnati and over to the lush foothills and old coal towns of Appalachia.<\/p>\n

Voters here have sent Massie back to Congress ever since his first election in 2012, embracing his stalwart independence and jaunty personality. Back in 2020, they brushed off Trump\u2019s social media demand to \u201cthrow Massie out of Republican Party\u201d because he was a \u201cthird rate Grandstander.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, Republican voters are debating whether they will do the same thing again. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf all we\u2019re doing is pulling in yes men, then how do you grow from that? How do you have the best end product if everyone just says, \u2018Oh yeah, that\u2019s a great idea,\u2019\u201d said Tonya Young, an attendee of the Lincoln Day Dinner who is leaning toward Massie but still undecided.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, I do feel like it\u2019s important to stay loyal. That\u2019s where, I\u2019m like, I\u2019m a hot mess,\u201d said the 57-year-old special education teacher. \u201cSometimes you have to just bite the bullet and compromise on things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Young said she will plumb through the Republican-backed bills that Massie voted against before she makes up her mind. What isn\u2019t a major part of her calculation is Trump\u2019s endorsement of Gallrein or his epithets against Massie.<\/p>\n

Young still supports Trump, rating his second term at a \u201cB to a C+” relative to his campaign promises. During Trump\u2019s first term, Young said, she\u2019d \u201cprobably put more stock in\u201d his endorsement.<\/p>\n

\u2018I\u2019m going to vote for Massie even though he makes me mad\u2019<\/h2>\n

At the Lincoln Day Dinner in Covington, well-dressed Republicans sat at circular tables, ate dinner and listened attentively as candidates gave speeches.<\/p>\n

Steve Jarvis, a 77-year-old retired law enforcement officer, who stood near the late night coffee station, has decided to vote against Massie for the very first time.<\/p>\n

\u201cMade me sad, truly it does,\u201d said Jarvis, wearing a bespoke American flag bow tie made of feathers, \u201cI like Massie.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Massie first ran for Congress, Jarvis bought a Massie campaign sign, sized for a freeway overpass, and planted it outside his home, a few doors down from which lived Massie\u2019s opponent.<\/p>\n

But some of Massie\u2019s departures from the party, he said, \u201cmade me nuts. I can\u2019t do it anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

One was Trump\u2019s flagship Big Beautiful Bill, which Massie voted against citing the consequent budget deficit and increased inflation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand voting your principle once or twice,\u201d said Jarvis, \u201cbut at some point in time when it becomes crucial, I think they have to get in line.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gallrein, he said, would get in line. <\/p>\n

Jana Kathman came to a different conclusion. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to vote for Massie even though he makes me mad,\u201d she said while shopping for bagels at a local farmers market outside Covington.<\/p>\n

The 56-year-old registered nurse said, \u201cI just like him as a person, I like how he lives his life, and I know he stands very strong with his convictions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though she still likes Trump, his endorsement and attacks don\u2019t impress her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t like when Trump plays the little games as soon as someone opposes him, but we know that\u2019s how Trump lashes out,\u201d Kathman said. <\/p>\n

\u2018Antibodies\u2019 to Trump\u2019s electoral broadside<\/h2>\n

Gallrein mounted the stage at the Lincoln Day Dinner with a prepared speech. He grew up on a family farm, was inspired by President Ronald Reagan to join the Navy SEALS and was recently asked by Trump to serve his country again in Congress. <\/p>\n

He hyped up Trump \u2014 \u201cDo you know he doesn\u2019t take a salary?\u201d \u2014 and launched into a list of Trump-backed policies Massie had voted against, lumping him in with the \u201cradical Democrats.\u201d <\/p>\n

Gallrein declined an interview request, and he\u2019s declined to attend candidate forums and debates with Massie. <\/p>\n

Several voters said they were grateful for Gallrein\u2019s service, but still don\u2019t have a grasp of his platform, aside from his fidelity to Trump. <\/p>\n

Massie argues that\u2019s why Kentucky should stick with him, using what has become a go-to refrain.<\/p>\n

\u201cPoliticians promise during the campaign, and then they go to D.C. to go along to get along,\u201d he said. \u201cMy opponent is promising to go along to get along.\u201d <\/p>\n

Massie is hopeful that Trump\u2019s anger will blow over once he wins the primary.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce this race is over, I don\u2019t think there\u2019s any benefit to him attacking me, I\u2019ll have the antibodies from a natural infection,\u201d Massie said chuckling.<\/p>\n

After years of being considered a conservative gadfly in Congress, he said, maybe he has some of those antibodies already.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis will be the booster shot,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

COVINGTON, Ky. (AP) \u2014 Rep. Thomas Massie was stuck in Washington for a vote on Capitol Hill, so one of his supporters made the pitch for his campaign in a banquet hall packed with Republicans in northern Kentucky. The audience had just heard Ed Gallrein, who was drafted by President Donald Trump to run against […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12837,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12836","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12836"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12836\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12837"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12836"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12836"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12836"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}