Trump sent a message by targeting Bill Cassidy. In defeat, Cassidy delivered one back

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy wanted his reelection campaign to be about “the now and the future.” President Donald Trump had other plans.

Five years after Cassidy voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial. lost senatorial primary For re-election to a candidate Trump supports and a second candidate who also embraces Trump. Trump-backed Rep. Julia Letlow and Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming now advance to a runoff.

Cassidy became the first GOP senator to lose reelection in nearly a decade; It’s a remarkable decline that shows once again how Trump dominates the party.

In his concession speech, without mentioning Trump, Cassidy signaled that he might spend the final months of his term giving Trump trouble, or at least criticizing his party more openly.

“Let me be clear: Our country is not about one person. It’s about the well-being of all Americans and it’s about our Constitution,” Cassidy said. “And if someone doesn’t understand that and tries to control others by using tools of power, that’s self-serving. It’s not serving us. And that person is not qualified to be a leader.”

Here are our takeaways from the first night in Louisiana:

Trump’s control over the party

Cassidy tried to cover up the impeachment vote by touting a good working relationship with Trump and stated that he had signed four bills in which Trump played a major role. But Cassidy couldn’t overcome the fact that siding against Trump on impeachment had become a permanent litmus test for GOP voters and the president.

Letlow, Fleming, and Trump raised the issue regularly, and Trump was particularly aggrieved that Cassidy voted to convict him after Trump supported him in his last reelection bid.

“Her disloyalty to the man who got her elected is now part of the legend and it is good to see her political career OVER!” Trump wrote on social media Saturday night.

By supporting Letlow against Cassidy, Trump has accomplished something he has yet to do in his remarkable political career: defeat a senator from his own party in the primary. This comes as he tries to unseat one of the biggest GOP mavericks in Congress — Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie – In the House primary on Tuesday.

Trump was quick to draw a connection between Cassidy and Massie. In a post on Truth Social early Sunday morning, Trump said Massie “is a greater insult to our Nation than Cassidy” and reiterated his support for Massie’s chief rival, Ed Gallrein.

Cassidy takes the road less traveled

One of the reasons Trump has so far been unable to defeat a Republican senator is that his previous internal party critics have been reluctant to seek re-election, rather facing the North Carolina Senator’s wrath in the primary. Thom Tillis is the latest example of this. Cassidy made it clear from the beginning that she wasn’t going out without a fight..

He said he had no regrets in his concession speech.

“I was able to participate in democracy,” he said, “and when you participate in democracy, sometimes things don’t work out the way you want.”

Cassidy’s defeat could be a warning sign for another Senate Republican who has previously angered Trump and is advancing a tough reelection bid: Sen. John Cornyn of neighboring Texas. But unlike Louisiana, Trump has stayed out of the conflict that will be resolved in the May 26 runoff election between Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

An interesting second round

With Cassidy out, the runoff between Letlow and Fleming raises new questions about who the president’s supporters in Louisiana prefer for the seat.

While Letlow began the overtime round as the favorite, Fleming proved resilient in the primary by presenting himself as the truly pro-Trump candidate. He is a former congressman who worked in the White House during Trump’s first term.

As voting in the primary election began Saturday morning, Trump referred to both rivals as “two great people” in a social media post.

In her first-night speech, Letlow vowed not to take the runoffs lightly and would travel the state again. Trump spoke a little more flippantly about the runoff, making it clear that Letlow was firmly behind him.

“Julia Letlow is a wonderful person and after taking on some additional work, she will be a great Senator for the Great People of Louisiana,” he wrote on social media.

Has Cassidy been released?

Tillis has been more outspoken about the Trump administration since deciding not to seek re-election. recently Tillis Cancels Trump’s candidacy Kevin Warsh headed the Federal Reserve to pressure the Justice Department to drop its investigation of then-Chairman Jay Powell.

On Saturday night, Cassidy said the country “isn’t just about one person” and compared himself to unnamed “leaders” who are more concerned with themselves than the people they serve. And she brought up her experience of being “attacked online” in her speech minutes before Trump launched his latest attack against her, accusing her of disloyalty.

“Insults only bother me when they come from someone of character and integrity,” Cassidy said. “I find that people of character and integrity do not waste their time attacking people on the internet.”

Cassidy made another explicit reference to Trump earlier in his speech, saying: His denial that he lost the 2020 elections – while extolling the virtues of democracy.

“You’re not sulking, you’re not whining, you’re not claiming the election was stolen… you’re not making excuses,” Cassidy said. “You thank the voters for the privilege of representing the state or the country for as long as you have that privilege. That’s what I’m doing right now.”

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