The Trump-Massie feud goes to a new level: From the Politics Desk
Welcome to the online version of From the Politics Desk, an evening newsletter that brings you the NBC News Politics team's latest reporting and analysis from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail.
In today's edition, Scott Bland dives into President Donald Trump's escalating attacks on Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican lawmaker who has proven to be a consistent thorn in his side. Plus, we have the latest from the Middle East as Trump announces a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Iran.
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— Adam Wollner
Rep. Thomas Massie has been an intraparty irritant to Donald Trump for years, but never to the point that the president decided to actually try to squash the Kentucky Republican in a primary. Until now.
Two of Trump's top political advisers are launching a super PAC dedicated to opposing Massie in his 2026 primary, after Massie's criticism of the Trump-ordered U.S. strikes in Iran this weekend. Trump and Massie have also been trading barbs on social media over the past 48 hours, with Trump posting on Truth Social, 'GET THIS 'BUM' OUT OF OFFICE, ASAP!!!,' and Massie saying on X that the president's actions are not 'American First.'
But the formation of the new political group is a step further than Trump has ever gone despite past annoyance with Massie, often a lonely, libertarian-inspired 'no' vote even when most of the House GOP is supporting something — like last month's vote to advance Trump's tax and spending package.
It's set to be one of next year's early tests of Trump's grip on the Republican Party, the power of the political war chest he continues to accumulate despite being term-limited, and the ability of remaining holdouts against his top-down version of the GOP to maintain any traction locally.
Before this election cycle, Massie had courted Trump's ire on several other high-profile occasions, including an early Covid relief effort in 2020, when Trump called him a 'third rate Grandstander' on social media.
Massie was one of a handful of House Republicans who endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for president over Trump in the 2024 primary, too. Once again, Trump's anger over that stopped short of an actual endorsement for a primary opponent.
Now, though, it seems that the president's annoyance is going to come down on Massie along with his money and maybe even that powerful endorsement, if Team Trump can find a credible challenger this time around. Massie is using Trump's opposition as a fundraising opportunity of his own, but it's not going to measure up to whatever Trump can air-drop into Kentucky against him.
As Jonathan Allen points out, Trump has targeted Republican incumbents in primaries before. Most notably, in the 2022 election cycle he sought to unseat GOP lawmakers who voted to impeach him after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Ultimately, eight of the 10 House Republicans lost their primaries or declined to seek re-election.
And last year, Trump backed John McGuire's successful primary challenge to Virginia's Bob Good, who was the chair of the House Freedom Caucus at the time.
President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social this evening that Israel and Iran had agreed to a ceasefire.
'CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE! It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE (in approximately 6 hours from now, when Israel and Iran have wound down and completed their in progress, final missions!), for 12 hours, at which point the War will be considered, ENDED!,' Trump wrote.
The announcement came hours after Iran launched a missile strike against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, which stations thousands of U.S. troops, in retaliation for the U.S. bombing its nuclear sites over the weekend.
Trump had said that no Americans were harmed and that 'hardly any damage was done.' He added that Iran gave 'early notice' of the attack.
Catch up on our latest reporting on the conflict in the Middle East:
How Trump decided to strike Iran, by Gordon Lubold, Carol E. Lee and Courtney Kube
Trump said Iran's nuclear sites were 'obliterated,' but questions remain about enriched uranium, by Keir Simmons
As Iran comes under attack, its Arab neighbors are largely AWOL, by Matt Bradley
Presidents ordering military action without Congress' approval has become routine. Here's why, by Gary Grumbach and Carol E. Lee
'Biden didn't start any wars': Democrats sharpen their arguments against Trump's foreign policy, by Peter Nicholas
Follow live updates →
Today NBC News launched a new evening podcast called 'Here's the Scoop.'
In each daily episode, rotating hosts Yasmin Vossoughian, Morgan Chesky and Brian Cheung bring you a fresh take on the day's top stories in 15 minutes or less.
Listen to the first episode here →
⚖️ SCOTUS watch: The Supreme Court made it easier for the Trump administration to deport convicted criminals to 'third countries' to which they have no previous connection. Read more →
⚖️ SCOTUS watch, cont.: The court also agreed to take up a religious claim by a Rastafarian whose dreadlocks were cut by prison officials in Louisiana. Read more →
📊 Survey says: As Senate Republican leaders hope to begin voting on Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' this week, a raft of new polling shows the party is losing the battle of public opinion on the legislation. Read more →
🚫 More on the BBB: Senate Democrats forced the removal of a provision from the bill that sought to restrict the power of courts to block federal government policies with injunctions or restraining orders. Read more →
🪧 In his own words: Mahmoud Khalil, recently released from immigration custody, described the conditions of his detention and decried the 'hypocrisy' of Columbia University, where he was a graduate student. Read more →
☑️ If it's Tuesday: Democrats are set to choose a new ranking member tomorrow for the House Oversight Committee in a four-way internal election that has broken down along generational lines. Read more →
👀 This town ain't big enough: Rahm Emanuel, the former Chicago mayor and White House chief of staff, told NBC News that the prospect of taking on Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker in a 2028 presidential run 'is going to be awkward.' Read more →
🗳️ More options, more obstacles: A review of ballot records from over 150 elections shows that rejected ballots are more common in ranked-choice elections. Read more →
That's all From the Politics Desk for now. Today's newsletter was compiled by Adam Wollner and Dylan Ebs.
If you have feedback — likes or dislikes — email us at politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com
And if you're a fan, please share with everyone and anyone. They can sign up here.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
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