Rep. Massie Faces Trump's Fury in GOP Primary
HEBRON, Ky. — Rep. Thomas Massie, who has long been a source of frustration for GOP leaders during his eight years in Congress, is not unfamiliar with facing primary challenges. However, this year, President Donald Trump's anger toward the Kentucky libertarian has escalated to a boiling point.
On Tuesday, voters in Kentucky's 4th Congressional District will determine if Massie is the next victim of Trump's effort to remove opponents within the Republican Party, as he competes against Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL and fifth-generation farmer who was directly brought on by the president.
People won't be voting for me or for him on election day," Massie said in an interview with NBC News at his Capitol Hill office. "They'll either be voting for me or against me.
The competition has become the most costly House primary in history regarding advertising expenses, as reported by AdImpact, reaching over $32 million — primarily driven by Trump-backed groups and pro-Israel organizations investing millions in negative advertisements targeting Massie.
On Saturday, Trump effectively removed Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., followingrecruiting and backinga key rival, GOP Representative Julia Letlow. And earlier this month in Indiana, Trumpassisted in removing GOP state legislators from officewho he blamed for preventing his redistricting there.
In Kentucky, Trump spent months looking for a candidate to challenge Massie, ultimately choosing Gallrein, who had only run for public office once before, when he lost a state Senate election in 2024. When Gallrein joined the primary against Massie in October, supported by a Trump post on Truth Social that urged him to run, he was, according to most perspectives, an unknown.
I want to just—give me someone with a warm body to challenge Massie," Trump said at a March event in the center of Massie's district. "And I have someone with a warm body, but also a big, wonderful mind and a great patriot.
Gallrein has embraced his role as Trump's selected candidate, informing Kentuckians during a campaign event on Thursday that he is "100% in support of the president and his efforts to restore our country."
He refused to engage in a debate with Massie and avoided county events where both candidates were scheduled to speak. He did not reply to an interview request from NBC News.
The tense relationship between Trump and Massie began during Trump's initial presidency, when Massie prevented the quick approval of a coronavirus relief bill amid the pandemic. Trump subsequently urged that Massie be expelled from the Republican Party, labeling the congressman a "third-rate showman."
It did not happen in 2020. However, the pressure escalated during Trump's second term.
Massie was among just two House Republicans who voted against Trump's "big, beautiful bill," his major tax and spending legislation, expressing worries about the growing national debt.
I believe Elon Musk has given up on this place," joked Massie, an engineer with an MIT background who has been wearing a self-made debt-clock pin on his lapel for years. "He discovered it was simpler to land rockets in reverse than to get this place to reduce even a single cent of expenditure.
However, the last straw for Trump, as stated by Massie, was the congressman's involvement in a bipartisan effort to compel the Justice Department to disclose all documents related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump initially opposed the legislation before ultimately signing it into law.
I vote with the party 90% of the time, but there are 10% of the instances where I believe my voters are better served by a different decision," Massie stated. "Releasing the Epstein documents placed me on the opposite side of the president for a considerable period, yet it was the correct choice in relation to my constituents, who had been assured that we would make the Epstein documents public.
Massie, who has consistently been against providing foreign aid and engaging in military actions abroad, also introduced a war powers resolution aimed at halting Trump's attacks on Iran and is among the most outspoken Republican opponents of the conflict.
Trump has referred to Massie as a "pathetic loser," a "lightweight," and a "sick wacko."
"Thomas Massie is a catastrophe for our party. He represents a state that I won by a huge margin. We need to eliminate this failure. This individual is terrible. He lacks loyalty to the Republican Party," Trump said to the audience when he visited Kentucky in March, prompting some boos just at the mention of Massie's name.
However, some people present said to NBC News that while they back Trump, they would cast their vote for Massie once more.
Under Trump's tight control of the GOP, Massie now has only a few Republican allies remaining on Capitol Hill, including Sen. Rand Paul from Kentucky and Reps. Warren Davidson from Ohio, Victoria Spartz from Indiana, and Lauren Boebert from Colorado. The last of these faced criticism from Trump and his supporters after some members of that group campaigned with Massie in Kentucky over the weekend.
I stand behind both of these individuals," Boebert posted on X. "And if that upsets you, I hope you're doing well.
Spartz proposed that the two individuals are more comparable than they seem. "They both have the potential to succeed. They are quite similar," she mentioned to NBC News. "They should be friends. This is simply about politics and elections."
Davidson shared comparable aspirations. "I support Thomas. I like President Trump. I like Thomas. I hope they resolve their differences," he mentioned, pointing out that Vice President JD Vance had previously been a strong critic of Trump before reconciling. "JD, at one point, didn't like President Trump. They are very close now."
The competition has also placed House Speaker Mike Johnson in a difficult position. Normally, GOP leadership supports its current representatives, but Trump has made removing Massie a key goal, and he is not a dependable vote for Johnson's weak, slim majority.
It would be beneficial to have a more dependable supporter for our agenda and the Republican Party. That's definitely accurate," Johnson said to NBC News in the Capitol last week. "However, I have largely remained out of the race, so I plan to continue doing so.
Rep. Andy Barr, who is seeking a Senate seat and has supported Gallrein, mentioned that Massie's independent nature, which previously attracted anti-establishment voters, is now proving detrimental to him.
Thomas has a quite loyal libertarian group in northern Kentucky, and they are very steadfast," Barr stated. "However, what you're witnessing now is different from previous cycles—the anti-establishment, rural MAGA vote is now opposing Thomas. They have become extremely frustrated with what they perceive as disloyalty to the president.
Massie believes the result will depend on voter turnout, highlighting a clear generational split in the limited polling data from the district. He claims that younger voters are strongly supporting him. Meanwhile, older voters — referred to as "the Fox News demographic" — are leaning towards Gallrein, as per Massie's assessment.
Young people truly support the idea of America first. They also want fewer wars, as they might be the ones called to fight them," Massie stated. "This will serve as a vote on whether the party's future lies in place on May 19.
Regarding his connection with Trump, Massie remained notably indifferent.
There are many congressmen present, he wouldn't be familiar with their first or last names or which state they represent," Massie stated. "He knows who I am. He understands my positions. And we have collaborated on issues in the past, and we will continue to do so after this election.
"I believe we'll be okay on May 20," he added.
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