Trump's Trials - Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie faces a tough primary challenge

Episode Date: May 19, 2026

Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie has been a thorn in the side of President Trump, who is backing Massie's primary challenger, making Tuesday's primary high stakes for both prominent Republicans.Support NPR and hear every episode of Trump's Terms sponsor-free with NPR+. Sign up at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

I'm Scott Detrow, and this is Trump's terms from NPR. Every episode, we bring you one story from NPR's coverage of the Trump administration with the focus on actions and policies that take the presidency into uncharted territory. Here's the latest from NPR. I'm Lela Faldon. A Republican congressman from Kentucky isn't afraid to tell his party or President Trump no. That has made Thomas Massey a national figure and a target of Trump's at the same time. Now Massey is facing the toughest primary challenge of his career from former Navy SEAL Ed Gowd.

Kentucky Public Radio, Sylvia Goodman, reports. You may remember Massey as the Republican who led the fight to get the Jeffrey Epstein files released, or the one who's consistently opposed Trump's involvement in foreign conflicts, or maybe as the one of two House GOP no votes on Trump's signature policy package, the one big, beautiful bill. I'm not going to vote with the party if going to bankrupt this country. With his signature federal debt clock on his lapel, Massey hasn't shied away from being the GOP opposition voice, even when it makes him unpopular in his party. He says constituents in his northern Kentucky district don't want a rubber stamp. There are people who may be registered to one party of the other, but when they go to the ballot box, they vote based

on their beliefs, and also do they trust the person? And I think I've earned the trust of Republicans, independents, and some Democrats. Trump has certainly not been quiet about his displeasure with Massey. On his social media feeds, he's called him a, quote, sick wacko, a complete and total disaster, and the Republican Party's worst congressman ever. The president has made it abundantly clear he wants Massey out, including when he came to Kentucky in March to loudly and proudly support his chosen candidate

to take him on, Ed Galhine. Give me somebody with a warm body to beat Massey. And I got somebody with a warm body, but a big, beautiful brain and a great patriot. He's unbelievable. If you're looking for where Gowleron splits with the president, you won't find it. I'm 100% behind the president what he's doing to turn our nation around. Gowlerine, a decorated Navy SEAL officer whose family are longtime Kentucky farmers, points to Trump's huge margins in Kentucky, which are even bigger in Massey's congressional district.

In 2024, Trump won Massey's district by more than 30. They support our president, all right, a thousand percent. And now I'm going to represent them. But Kentucky has a history of choosing contrarians. Think Senator Rand Paul, who's a strong ally of Massey's and has campaigned with him. Trump is called Massey Rand Paul Jr. Massey says he's stuck with his principles and that's why people vote for him. Massey has long voted against big omnibus bills because of all the spending line items.

He says it gives his opponents. a lot of ammunition. You can run virtually any ad you want against me. And well, the ads in this race have gotten wild. One ad made with artificial intelligence appears to show Massey in a romantic thruple with Democratic Congresswomen. This is worse than adultery. It's a complete and total betrayal of President Trump. With candidate and PAC spending through the roof, it's likely to be one of the country's most expensive House primaries. And some Republican voters are conflicted. While many have voted for Massey for years, they wonder if he's become too much of an obstructionist. Here's Ron Stam, who attended the Kenton County Republican dinner.

They pack all these extraneous things to these bills. Well, Thomas Massey's the kind of guy. He says, no, I'm not going to vote for all of this other stuff. Stan does wonder, maybe that strategy doesn't work in Washington. Others say they don't want to vote for a puppet and respect Massey for standing behind the same values he's always had. But Trump loyalists like Janice Sewell from Hebrin, who attended Trump's Northern Kentucky rally,

say it's time for Massey to get out of the way. He should be a registered Democrat. Seriously, that's how I feel. Because he votes with the Democrats on everything. Polls have gone back and forth. Up until last week, Massey had the edge. But a recent poll showed Gowlerin picking up steam. For NPR News, I'm Sylvia Goodman in Louisville, Kentucky.

Before we wrap up a reminder, you can find more coverage of the Trump administration on the NPR Politics podcast, where you can hear NPR's political reporters break down the day's biggest political news with new episodes every weekday afternoon. And thanks, as always, to our NPR Plus supporters who hear every episode of the show without sponsor messages. You can learn more at plus.npr.org. I'm Scott Detrow. Thanks for listening to Trump's terms from NPR.