You almost have to admire the sheer predictability of it all.
Senator Bill Cassidy, a literal medical doctor, sold out his profession and his dignity to please the MAGA king.
And guess what?
It wasn’t enough.
In a Truth Social post on Saturday, Donald Trump explicitly encouraged a primary challenge against the Louisiana Senator.
This comes despite Cassidy’s desperate, sweaty attempts to ingratiate himself to the president.
A Deal With The Devil
Remember when Cassidy provided that hugely consequential vote last year to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Trump’s health secretary?
Yes, the actual doctor voted for the anti-vaxxer.
Cassidy knew full well that RFK Jr. opposed vaccine science.
As chairman of the Senate’s health committee, which has oversight of the department, Cassidy has done little to push back on the health secretary’s massive changes to federal vaccine guidelines.
Those changes have deeply alarmed health experts, and even Cassidy himself.
But surely, throwing science under the bus would buy him safety from the Orange One, right?
Wrong.
Run, Julia, Run?
In that same Truth Social post, Trump urged Rep. Julia Letlow to run for Cassidy’s seat.
Cassidy originally committed the cardinal sin of voting to convict Trump in his impeachment trial after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol in 2021.
Trump clearly hasn’t forgotten.
“Should she decide to enter this Race, Julia Letlow has my Complete and Total Endorsement. RUN, JULIA, RUN!!!” Trump wrote in the post.
The caps lock really adds that stable genius touch we all miss so much.
Letlow, a three-term congresswoman, said she was “honored” to have the endorsement.
She hasn’t officially announced her plans for the February primary yet.
However, according to NBC News, she indicated in recent weeks that support from the president would help tip the scales in favor of challenging Cassidy.
“My mission is clear: to ensure the nation our children inherit is safer and stronger,” Letlow said in a statement.
She added, “This United States Senate seat belongs to the people of Louisiana, because we deserve conservative leadership that will not waver.”
The GOP Panic Room
Cassidy is putting on a brave face while the knife twists in his back.
“I’m proudly running for re-election as a principled conservative who gets things done for the people of Louisiana,” the senator said in a statement.
He added, “If Congresswoman Letlow decides to run I am confident I will win.”
This is a massive headache for Senate GOP leaders.
They are desperately trying to avoid messy and expensive primaries to keep control of the Senate next year.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune even appeared with Cassidy at an event in Baton Rouge on Friday to tout GOP tax cuts.
That was just a day before Trump’s announcement blew everything up.
It turns out that appeasement never works with bullies.
Cassidy abandoned his medical principles for a political pat on the head, and all he got was a kick out the door.
