Washington DC - Donald Trump's campaign of retribution against Republicans who defy him rolls into another round of primary elections Tuesday, with one of the most independent conservatives in Congress facing the full force of the president's political machine.
Voters in Georgia, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Idaho, and Oregon are choosing nominees for November's midterm elections, but the marquee fight is in Kentucky, where Trump wants to oust Thomas Massie – one of the few House Republicans willing to challenge him openly.
The contest follows two bruising victories for Trump loyalists that reminded the party rank-and-file of the risks of opposing a leader who retains an iron grip on his party, even as his approval ratings plummet.
Earlier this month, Indiana state lawmakers who resisted Trump's redistricting demands were routed in primaries, while Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy – one of seven Republicans who voted to convict Trump after the 2021 US Capitol riot – failed even to make the runoff over the weekend.
Massie did not vote to impeach or convict Trump, but he has angered the president by opposing key parts of his agenda, pushing for the release of the files on sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and demanding congressional oversight of US military action in Venezuela and Iran.
Trump has endorsed Ed Gallrein, a farmer and retired Navy SEAL, against the seven-term incumbent.
Why is this election so important to MAGA?
The media have described the race as the most expensive House primary in American history, with more than $30 million spent and pro-Israel groups pouring millions into the effort to defeat Massie, a critic of Israeli policy.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was due to appear with Gallrein on Monday, a highly unusual intervention by a sitting Pentagon chief, though his office said he was attending in a personal capacity and no taxpayer funds would be used.
Trump has hammered Massie on Truth Social, calling him "a disloyal, ungracious, and sanctimonious FOOL," "the worst and most unreliable Republican Congressman in the history of our Country" and a "totally ineffective LOSER."
Massie has cast the attacks as evidence of panic, telling ABC his opponents "haven't been able to gain a lead" and that outside money had turned the race into "a referendum on foreign policy."
The result will be watched closely across the Republican Party, where Trump's national approval ratings have weakened, but his hold on primary voters remains formidable.
Senator Lindsey Graham summed up the warning to dissenters, telling NBC: "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."