By Greg LaRose, Kentucky Lantern · May 18, 2026 Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky has been marked for defeat by President Donal;d Trump, who has endorsed his opponent in Kentucky’s Republican primary Tuesday, May 19, 2026. Trump also opposed incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, wh o was eliminated in Saturday’s GOP primary. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy’s feeble showing in Louisiana’s Republican primary cued up a chorus of allegiance to President Donald Trump from GOP figures on the Sunday morning talk show circuit, save for another incumbent who has dared to defy the party leader. Cassidy finished third in behind Trump’s choice to replace him, U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow, and Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming, who will meet in a runoff next month to decide who advances to the November general election. Though his campaign positioned him as a Trump loyalist, Cassidy failed to mend the break with the MAGA sect after he voted to convict Trump in 2021 for his part in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. That vote started the physician from Baton Rouge down a path from which he could not recover, according to U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina. “You can disagree with President Trump. But if you try to destroy him, you’re going to lose because this is the party of Donald Trump,” Graham said in an interview with Kristen Welker on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Cassidy is the 12th of 15 Republicans in Congress who supported impeachment efforts against Trump in 2021 and either lost re-election or chose not to run again.  On “Fox News Sunday,” U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, one of Cassidy’s fellow Republicans in the Louisiana delegation, deflected suggestions that Trump’s GOP doesn’t allow for dissent. Yet Johnson acknowledged the sway the president has in the Pelican State. “It’s true that President Trump has a huge influence in our state, as he does still across the country, and you see that over and over in all these elections,” Johnson told host Shannon  U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter of Georgia was asked to weigh in on Cassidy’s loss during his appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union.” Carter is one of five candidates in Tuesday’s GOP primary in the race to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen Jon Ossoff, who did not draw a party primary opponent.  “I don’t think you should ever go against the president and vote for impeachment if you’re going to plan on … running for re-election. This is just another example,” Carter told host Dana Bash. “Donald Trump is going to try to get rid of anyone who is not helping him with his agenda.     Trump has not made an endorsement in the Georgia contest, but he has been very vocal about his choice in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District race. The president has called for the defeat of incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, who has been consistently critical of the Trump administration failure to fully disclose records from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.  Massie also voted against the “One, Big Beautiful Bill” and has been the only Republican in the U.S. House to support legislation limiting Trump’s unilateral war powers.  Besides calling Massie a “major sleazebag” and the “Worst Republican Congressman in History,” Trump has directed his supporters to vote for Ed Gallrein, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, in Tuesday’s GOP primary.  Massie appeared on “This Week with George Stephanopoulis” and was asked for his thoughts on Trump’s emphasis on the Kentucky congressional race after having successfully displaced Cassidy in Louisiana. “I think that’s going to help my fundraising …” Massie said. “Every time he tweets about me, it’s good for, you know, some money coming in because people don’t like that.” Spending on advertising in the Kentucky congressional race has topped $32 million, according to The Sunday Times. This story was originally produced by Louisiana Illuminator, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Kentucky Lantern, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. The post Republicans credit Trump for Cassidy’s defeat; Massie faces next test in Kentucky appeared first on The Lexington Times. ...read more read less