Maddow Blog-White House eyes primaries for GOP members who opposed the Trump agenda megabill

[LetMyPeopleVote]

The president seems less interested in persuading GOP members like Thomas Massie and Warren Davidson and more interested in threatening them.

White House eyes primaries for GOP members who opposed the Trump agenda megabill www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

— Whatifisaidit (@whatifisaidit.bsky.social) 2025-05-23T22:53:18.155Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/gop-primaries-gop-republicans-house-2026-rcna208759

Ahead of the floor vote on the poorly named “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” Republican leaders had one obvious goal: keep intraparty defections to an absolute minimum. As the dust settled, it was clear they’d succeeded, with only two GOP members — Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Warren Davidson of Ohio — joining a unanimous House Democratic conference in voting against the far-right reconciliation package.

Massie’s opposition was a near-certainty — he’s long criticized the bill as fiscally irresponsible — but Davidson’s vote was less expected. By way of an explanation, the Ohioan issued an online statement early Thursday morning that read in part, “While I love many things in the bill, promising someone else will cut spending in the future does not cut spending. Deficits do matter and this bill grows them now. The only Congress we can control is the one we’re in. Consequently, I cannot support this big deficit plan.”

Evidently, for the White House, that wasn’t good enough.

https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:aunpu65mdrhwfie7ynymlzeh/post/3lprojo5v3c2l

Link to tweet

A reporter asked press secretary Karoline Leavitt, “You had two Republicans last night that voted against this bill, congressmen Massie and Davidson. Does the president think that they should be primaried?” Donald Trump’s chief spokesperson responded, “I believe he does, and I don’t think he likes to see grandstanders in Congress.”

She added the president “believes the Republican Party needs to be unified, and the vast majority of Republicans clearly are and are listening to the president.” Those who fail to “listen to the president,” evidently, should expect Trump to support primary campaigns against them......

Or put another way, Massie and Davidson probably shouldn’t panic just yet about their electoral futures.

Yet the White House’s comment did tell us something notable about Trump’s perspective: The president is less interested in trying to persuade or convince members like Massie and Davidson, and more interested in threatening them. In Trump’s leadership model, the solution is to bark orders and to demand obedience.

It’s a recipe for generating fear, but not respect.

[C_U_L8R]

1. OBEY

or else.

That's a recipe for dumping a despot.

[no_hypocrisy]

2. I'm certain that these "renegade" Republicans consulted their campaign

managers before casting their vote and determined that Trump won't be able to find a primary candidate who will beat them in 2026.

[Cha]

3. "president".. Not... it's the Treasonous Dic that

only answers to Putin.