/

Ousted GOP Lawmaker Makes Surprise 2028 Move After Primary Defeat

4 mins read
Thomas Massie
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Rep. Thomas Massie filed paperwork Monday for the 2028 election less than a week after losing his Republican primary to a challenger backed by President Donald Trump.

“I filed with FEC for the 2028 House race,” Massie wrote on social media. “This allows me to raise funds to continue my political operations supporting my position as a current office holder and as a potential candidate for federal office.”

“I haven’t made a final decision about which office to seek, if I run,” he added.

Massie shared a statement of candidacy filed with the Federal Election Commission designating his Kentucky campaign committee as his principal committee for the 2028 cycle.

He also authorized the Transportation Trust Fund to “receive and expend” funds on his behalf. The Wisconsin-based joint fundraising committee raises money for more than 30 House Republicans.

Massie lost last Tuesday’s Republican primary in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District to Trump-backed challenger Ed Gallrein.

Trump endorsed Gallrein after repeatedly clashing with Massie over issues including the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the Jeffrey Epstein files and the conflict involving Iran.

The president publicly attacked Massie before the primary. Trump called him a “Third Rate Congressman” in a Truth Social post while endorsing Gallrein’s campaign.

🗳️Turning Point PAC is deploying the largest ballot-chasing operation in U.S. History to secure key battleground states. 🗳️ Keep our grassroots army in the field and protect future victories! ➡️➡️➡️ DONATE TODAY!!! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

According to FEC filings, the committee received roughly $98,000 in contributions and transferred more than $43,000 to other committees during the current cycle.

During Massie’s concession speech, supporters repeatedly chanted “2028!” before others began yelling “President!”

Massie reacted with a smile. “Alright, well you’ve made a compelling argument, you spoke your peace, but I need a medical margarita right now and we’ll talk about it later,” he told the crowd.

The following day, Massie shared video of supporters chanting his name. “I lost the election but we started a revolution,” Massie wrote. “Keep the flame of LIBERTY burning my friends!”

“I will continue to put People and Principles before Party,” he added. “America First!”

Massie later discussed his political future during a Sunday appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

“I’ve spent the last five days on my farm with my grandkids, and my cattle, and my peach trees, and it’s a pretty nice life,” Massie told Kristen Welker.

“I don’t know if I want to screw that up again. I’ve been in Congress 14 years, fighting. Every hour that passes, I get decompressed a little bit more. It’s like coming up from the bottom of the ocean.”

Massie added that he planned to remain politically active. “I think I will stay engaged in some way or shape,” he said.

“Maybe it’s from the outside,” he continued. “I’ve been exposing what’s going on in Washington, D.C., for years, and I’ll keep doing it.”

Massie also argued that his work on legislation tied to the Epstein files played a major role in the political effort to remove him from office.

The Kentucky Republican worked with Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna on legislation seeking to require the Department of Justice to release the Epstein files. Massie claimed the bipartisan effort angered establishment figures in Washington.

“Since the day I got to Washington D.C., I’ve been doing this job like I thought people wanted you to do it,” Massie told Welker.

“I read the bills. I didn’t give my voting card to the speaker. I’ve never given it to a president. I don’t even give my voting card to the Freedom Caucus. I vote for people over party.”

Massie then pointed directly to the Epstein legislation. “I think the biggest crime I committed against the swamp, Kristen, was showing the American people that somebody on the right could join somebody on the left and get something done, which is releasing the Epstein files,” Massie remarked.

“That’s probably the only bill that’s passed Washington, D.C. in the last 10 years that lobbyists haven’t written. It was written by me and Ro Khanna,” he went on.

“We used the pressure of the American people to cross the aisle and get things done. That’s when they decided I had to be taken out. That I was becoming effective, so they wanted to eliminate me.”

Massie was one of four House Republicans who signed a discharge petition tied to the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The legislation later passed the House with one “no” vote.

After his loss, Massie rejected theories that the election had been rigged. “I do not believe I lost due to fraudulent votes, mail-in ballots, hacking, or mistabulated results,” Massie wrote Friday. “I respect those who want to make sure, but I won’t be requesting a recount.”

Massie instead blamed outside spending and broader political dynamics surrounding the race. “They couldn’t buy my vote in 14 years, so they bought this seat,” Massie said. “This was the most expensive race in congressional primary history.”

Massie also warned Republicans could face problems with parts of Trump’s coalition. “There’s a growing number of people on the right who have a form of TDS called Trump disappointment syndrome,” Massie stated.

“They’ve alienated MAHA by kowtowing to the pesticide manufacturers and the pharmaceutical manufacturers. They’ve alienated the fiscal hawks by running DOGE out of town. They’ve alienated the people who don’t want to fight another war.”

Massie also criticized Republican spending priorities. “The ballroom, I mean that is such an egregious waste of money,” Massie noted while discussing the proposed White House ballroom project.

“It’s a slap in the face of Americans. We’re operating like a Roman Empire. We’re overextended overseas with our foreign aid, with our foreign bases. We’re spending money that we don’t have.”

During the same “Meet the Press” interview, Massie said he would support a short-term agreement with Iran after Trump announced a deal had “largely been negotiated.”

“Heck yes, I would support it!” Massie commented. “We don’t know what the terms of it are, but if Lindsey Graham and Ted Cruz are crashing out last night, I’d say it’s probably a pretty good deal.”

Massie tied the issue to rising fuel and farming costs. “My constituents are hurting,” he pointed out. “Gas is almost $5 a gallon. Diesel is almost $6 a gallon, and the farmers here in Kentucky can’t afford the fertilizer to put on their fields.”

Trump later said negotiations with Iran were proceeding in an “orderly and constructive manner” and stressed that Iran could not “develop or procure a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb.”

Tags:

You might be interested in

Clark Kelley

1 Comment

  2. Massie is a loser, he’s ripping off donors of their hard earned money, the end result is he will lose at whatever he tries

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Latest from Blog