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KY Rep. Thomas Massie is at odds again with Trump over Iran. Here's the history
Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie and President Donald Trump don't always see eye-to-eye.
In fact, the two Republicans have been at odds for most of Trump's second term. Massie was one of only two House Republican 'no' votes on the president's massive spending bill, and he's been the loudest voice in the room against Trump's actions against Iran.
And on Saturday, Massie led GOP opposition to the Trump administration's intervention in the Israel-Iran war by striking three Iranian nuclear development sites.
Trump has repeatedly called the 4th Congressional District Rep. a 'grandstander' and said earlier this year he 'should be primaried.'
The past few months are just the latest in a long history between Massie and Trump, though. The pair agree on many conservative principles, and have endorsed each other at points, but Massie's relationship with has been among the most frictional of any sitting lawmaker over the years. Here's a timeline:
Massie, a critic of most precautionary measures adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic, forced an in-person vote on a Trump-backed relief package early in the pandemic in 2020. Members of both parties criticized Massie, and Trump called him a 'third-rate grandstander.' The president also urged Republican leaders at the time to 'throw Massie out of Republican Party.'
Later that year, a GOP primary challenger's attempt to brand Massie as disloyal to the president fell far short of success. The challenger, Todd McMurtry, notched 19 percentage points to Massie's 81.
During the next election cycle, Claire Wirth took a similar tack and lost by roughly the same margin. Shortly after Massie's primary win, Trump endorsed him for the general election, calling the representative a 'Conservative Warrior' and a 'first-rate Defender of the Constitution.'
In 2023, Massie hitched his wagon to the GOP presidential primary campaign of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. The governor was viewed widely as the most viable Republican alternative to Trump. Massie made several out-of-state appearances with DeSantis before DeSantis withdrew from the race in early 2024.
In May 2024, Massie trounced his two GOP primary opponents, including Eric Deters, a Northern Kentucky political figure who has hewed close to Trump.
In October 2024, just 11 days before the general election, Massie endorsed Trump in his ultimately successful bid for president.
One of Trump's first legislative priorities was a funding bill that averted a government shutdown. Massie was the only 'no' vote on the bill in March of this year, prompting Trump's call that he 'should be primaried,' and vowing to 'lead the charge against him.'
In the midst of that scrum, former co-manager of the Trump 2024 presidential campaign Chris LaCivita posted a cryptic message on social media indicating he'd work against Massie. As of late June, a legitimate primary challenger has yet to be announced.
On Trump's wide-reaching 'Big Beautiful Bill,' Massie was unflagging in his opposition, citing its likelihood of increasing the national deficit and not cutting entitlement programs like Medicaid as much as he'd like. Trump made a pitch to Massie face-to-face at a House GOP caucus meeting in May, and Massie was unmoved.
Two days later, Massie was one of just two House GOP members to vote no on the 'Big Beautiful Bill.'
Since the conflict between Israel and Iran has heightened in the last 10 days, Massie has been one of the leading anti-intervention voices on the American right. Trump has not responded directly to Massie's activism, which turned to stark criticism following the U.S. military strikes on Iranian nuclear sites Saturday. Massie has asserted that the administration needed to consult Congress before launching the attack, and last week introduced a resolution against U.S. involvement in the war.
Massie joined his resolution's co-sponsor, California Democrat Ro Khanna, for an interview on CBS Sunday denouncing the strikes. He framed the aggression as going against a crucial part of the new Republican party that stands against foreign intervention, adding he believes it was 'a good week for the neo-cons in the military industrial complex who want war all the time.'
