Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky and President Donald Trump are embroiled in a very public battle amid the conflict in the Middle East, and Massie added more fuel to the fire Tuesday.
Newsweek reached out to Massie’s office via email for comment Tuesday night.
Why It Matters
Massie, a conservative “America-first” Republican, has been at odds with Trump numerous times throughout the president’s second term in the White House.
The Kentucky lawmaker is a staunch opponent of the “big beautiful bill,” to the ire of Trump. He has called for the United States to stop sending military aid to Israel amid the war in Gaza and over the last week has publicly rebuked the president’s decision to strike Iran amid Tehran’s war with Israel.
Massie views the Trump administration’s weekend bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities as “not constitutional.”
The strikes on Iran’s nuclear program mark the first direct U.S. military involvement in the escalating Israel-Iran war that began earlier this month and is the first time in history the U.S. struck Iran directly.
What To Know
In a post to X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday, Vice President JD Vance asked, “I wonder if other VPs had as much excitement as I do 😂”
Massie responded hours later: “Ask Mike Pence about his last month,” jabbing Trump over the January 6 siege on the U.S. Capitol in which the president’s supporters called for Pence to be hanged.
The response from Massie had been seen over 420,000 times while garnering 11,000 likes and nearly 1,000 comments as of 10:56 p.m. ET.
Massie last week also cosponsored a bill with Democratic Representative Ro Khanna of California in an attempt to thwart the president from getting involved in the conflict with Iran.
Amid the strife in the Middle East, Massie joked that he would like a ceasefire deal with Trump himself on the heels of the announced agreement between Iran and Israel.
“I’d like a ceasefire between me and President Trump, if I can get the same deal after his bunker busters he dropped on me,” Massie told CNN‘s Manu Raju.
What People Are Saying
Trump posted to Truth Social on Tuesday: “Third Rate Congressman Thomas Massie, of the Great Commonwealth of Kentucky, a phenomenal State that I won all three times (by a lot!), keeps talking about how he is going to protect the Constitution, but he is actually very bad for the Constitution, and will probably vote against ‘THE GREAT, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL,’ that grants the Biggest Tax Cuts in History, secures our Southern Border from Criminal Invasion, funds the Golden Dome, our Great Military and Veterans, protects our Second Amendment, grants NO TAX ON TIPS, NO TAX ON OVERTIME, and NO TAX ON SOCIAL SECURITY (for our Great Seniors!), and so much more.”
Trump continued: “He is against all of the above, and many other incredible things. Why would anyone want to vote for a so-called ‘Congressman,’ a RINO, at best, who wants to raise your Taxes by 68%, which is what will happen if, ‘THE GREAT, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL; doesn’t pass. He votes, ‘NO!’ on everything, because he thinks it makes him cool, but he’s not cool, he’s a LOSER!”
Massie posted to X on Sunday, responding to a previous post from Trump: “.@realDonaldTrump declared so much War on me today it should require an Act of Congress. #sassywithmassie“
The White House on Monday told Newsweek: “The only thing Thomas Massie wants is more attention for his unproductive, obstructionist behavior. We hope he enjoys his last term in office.”
What Happens Next
Trump is expected to campaign hard against Massie in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections, but the Kentucky Republican also told CNN’s Raju that he could “sustain” the president’s endorsement of his opposition.