President Donald Trump is increasing pressure on Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) to align with House Republicans and vote yes on the government funding bill.
In a Truth Social post Tuesday, Trump labels Massie as a “Congressman” and a grandstander. It follows a message Monday where Trump suggested Massie should be primaried — saying he would “lead the charge” against Massie in the upcoming midterm election and comparing the Kentucky Republican to former Rep. Liz Cheney.
“He additionally voted to delay the current Budget Disaster from the Biden Administration to the Trump Administration. I was running for Office at the time, doing my thing, and when I heard about this, it was, quite simply, hard to believe — A catastrophic mistake!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Massie has been adamantly against the CR and has vowed to vote against it. “Unless I get a lobotomy Monday that causes me to forget what I’ve witnessed the past 12 years, I’ll be a NO on the CR this week,” Massie wrote on X on Sunday.
His no-vote alone won’t stop the CR from passing, but combined with any other defections it poses a risk to Speaker Mike Johnson’s razor thin margins. It’s also a defiance of Trump’s orders for the Republican Party to fall in line.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also stressed Trump’s urging for every Republican to back the bill.
“The president has made it very clear he believes it is critical for conservatives and Republicans and frankly all members of Congress to get behind this continuing resolution to keep the government funded,” Leavitt said at a press briefing Tuesday. “He has been active in this process and making calls to get this over the finish line, and we are urging every Republican — and Democrats, too — to do what is right for the American public to prevent a government shutdown.”
Massie said the threat of Trump challenging his election hasn’t fazed his vote.
“POTUS is spending his day attacking me and Canada,” Massie wrote on X on Tuesday. “The difference is Canada will eventually cave.”
