((The hill) – GOP senators have “frightened” about the prospect of presenting themselves in front of the main challengers, which are financed by Elon Musk if they remove their necks through the agenda against the agenda of opposing president Donald Trump.
The White House has signaled that Republicans, the Trump’s agenda, vote against his controversial candidates or opposing efforts of Musk to freeze the financing of the government and to lower the federal authorities such as the US agency for international development, a political Pay price.
And that is a threat that has a lot more weight if Muschus, the richest man in the world, could pour slightly tens of million in a republican area code of the Senate.
Musk warned the Republican legislator in December that he had put together a “cheeky list” of members who joined Trump’s agenda. Shortly after the election day, he promised that his political campaign committee would “play an important role in the primaries next year”.
At that time, the threat was mainly aimed at rebellious house conservatives, which emerged as an obstacle to the re-election of the spokesman Mike Johnson (R-La.) And threatened the tax agenda from Trump by insisting on larger expenses.
But Republican senators have taken Musk’s warning to heart.
“This is one of the reasons why they see people who are close to a choice. [Sens.] Bill Cassidy [R-La.]Thom Tillis [R-N.C.]voted for certain candidates, ”said a Republican senator, who asked the anonymity to discuss the recent voices of GOP colleagues.
“The white house was not too subtle about it. I think they were pretty threatening, ”added the legislator and found that Cassidy was facing a primary challenge of the treasurer of Louisiana John Flemming.
Since the inauguration, GOP senators have voted diligently, Trump’s most controversial cabinet candidate such as Pete Hegseth, who is now heading the Pentagon, and Russell Vokt, who will take over the White House household office.
Tillis, who was for re -election in 2026, fluctuated with the coordination for Hegseth, but finally announced his support for the competitive candidate after Hegseth had published a letter in the social media in which the allegations of abusive behavior and drunkenness in one Agency was refused by his former sister -in -law.
Senator Joni Ernst (R-IOWA), who will also be re-elected next year, initially said she was not ready to support Hegseth in an interview on December 5 on December 5. This ambivalence was hit by a robust counter -reaction of social media by Trump supporters.
The next day, the Attorney General of Iowa, Brenna Bird (R), “DC politician”, because you think you can ignore the voices of your voters and entertain them “, even though she is not grave in her column for the conservative website Breitbart named.
A democratic senator who organized the opposition against Trump’s candidate said that the risk of muscle-packed primary challengers helped Hegseth to win and set two other controversial candidates-Tulsi Gabbard, who as director of the National Secret Service and Robert F. Kennedy JR .
“I think my colleagues are occasionally, but not too often under the pressure to apply for objections,” said the senator and referred to discussions with Republican colleagues.
“They are all afraid of the power he is doing,” said the Democrat about Musks Allianz with Trump.
Gabard and Kennedy received unanimous Republicans in the secret services and financial committees and are expected to win a confirmation next week.
Cassidy, the chairman of the Senate, Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, said he was fighting for Kennedy’s nomination, but finally voted to report it to the ground.
A second Republican senator who was involved in the confirmation process said that Musk’s threat for the financing of the primary challengers had burdened the colleagues who initially dedicated themselves to Trump’s most controversial candidates.
“He talked about it,” the Senator told Musk’s threat to the primary GOP lawyers who vote against Trump’s agenda.
The senator found that Trump supported Senator Lisa Murkowskis (R-Alaska) Primary Challenger in 2022, after she had voted to condemn him because of the indictment, but Alaska’s senator still won the nomination.
But that was without a musk on his side to deliver tens of million dollars to pay his political vendas.
“The president campaigned in primary elections, but money counts,” said the senator.
According to the analysis of the public campaign financing reports, Musk spent at least 288 million US dollars for the election of Trump and other Republican candidates in 2024.
Trump also called for a primary challenge against Sen. John Thune (Rs.d.) in 2020, after Thun had swore to oppose an effort of the allies of Trump to apply for Joe Bidens’ certificate. This threat was nothing when Thune 2022 drove to a straightforward re -election.
The Republican senators took a more aggressive attitude towards Trump’s first candidate for the head of the Ministry of Justice, the former MPs of Florida, Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.). Gaetz pulled his name back on November 21, after the Republican senators had made it clear that he was unacceptable.
However, the political environment of the Senate’s Republican conference changed, after Republicans expressed doubts and concerns about Hegseth, strongly appeared by Trump allies on social media.
The Pro Trump activist Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point Action, a group that mobilized voters for Trump in the 2024 elections, warned that “the financing is already being put together” and that “primary elections are launched.
He signed Ernst, Tillis and Senator Mike Rounds (Rs.d.) as possible goals.
Three Republicans, Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Mitch McConnell (Ky.), The former Senate Gop leader and Murkowski voted against Hegseth.
In any case, the pressure campaign to bring Hegseth over the finish line were a note in the Senate.
A third republican senator said, even if Trump remains neutral in a GOP area code of the Senate, there is increasingly concerned with the colleagues that ultra-rich donors and basic activists could face impressive primary challenges in order to punish the perceived infidelity.
“He, who stays away from a race, does not mean that his following and you have considerable skills,” said the legislator, adding that Musk’s wealth represents primary threats to a larger deal.
