Donald Trump never forgets a betrayal.
One Senator is finding that out the hard way.
And Trump just threw the Disloyal RINO under the bus with the campaign move that could end his Senate career.
Trump Backs Letlow Over Cassidy in Louisiana Senate Battle
President Trump shattered Republican Senate unity by endorsing Rep. Julia Letlow to challenge sitting GOP Senator Bill Cassidy in Louisiana's 2026 race.
"RUN JULIA RUN!!!" Trump declared on Truth Social, followed by: "Should she decide to enter this Race, Julia Letlow has my Complete and Total Endorsement."
Letlow entered Congress in 2021 after her husband Luke died from COVID-19 complications just days before being sworn in.
"I'm honored to have President Trump's endorsement and trust," Letlow responded on X.
Monday she officially announced her Senate campaign in Baton Rouge.
Cassidy tried projecting confidence after getting blindsided.
"I'm proudly running for re-election as a principled conservative who gets things done for the people of Louisiana," Cassidy posted.
The senator told NBC that "senior people" in Trump's orbit assured him the President would stay neutral.
Those assurances proved worthless.
One Vote That Cassidy Can't Escape
The tension traces back to February 13, 2021.
Cassidy joined six other Republican Senators in voting to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial over the January 6 Capitol incident.
The Louisiana Republican Party unanimously censured Cassidy hours after his vote.
"We condemn, in the strongest possible terms, the vote today by Sen. Cassidy to convict former President Trump," the Louisiana GOP declared.
State Representative Blake Miguez warned Cassidy bluntly.
"Don't expect a warm welcome when you come home to Louisiana!" Miguez wrote.
Cassidy defended his vote by claiming the Constitution mattered more than party loyalty.
"Our Constitution and our country is more important than any one person. I voted to convict President Trump because he is guilty," Cassidy stated.
That principled stance earned him lasting enmity from Trump's base in Louisiana.
Only Alaska's Lisa Murkowski and Maine's Susan Collins remain in the Senate from that impeachment group facing 2026 re-election.
Cassidy's Attempts to Make Amends Fall Short
Cassidy spent the last year trying to repair his relationship with Trump.
He voted to confirm all of Trump's cabinet nominees, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. despite having serious reservations about Kennedy's vaccine skepticism.
None of it mattered.
Cassidy also angered conservatives by joining 14 other GOP senators in passing Biden's Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, a gun control measure Second Amendment defenders viewed as a major cave to Democrats.
The pattern became clear — Cassidy would talk like a conservative but vote with the establishment when it counted.
Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming already entered the race in December, specifically citing Cassidy's impeachment vote.
Now Letlow enters as Trump's preferred candidate, creating a two-front war against Cassidy from the right.
Louisiana's Changed Primary System Seals Cassidy's Fate
Louisiana legislators changed the state's primary system in 2024, eliminating the old "jungle primary" where all candidates competed on one ballot.
The new closed primary means only Republican voters decide the GOP nominee.
That eliminates the cushion Cassidy enjoyed from moderate Democrats and independents crossing over in past elections.
Cassidy won re-election in 2020 by 40 points, but that was under the old system and before his impeachment vote.
The closed primary forces him to win over Trump loyalists who dominate Louisiana's Republican base.
Louisiana went for Trump by massive margins in both 2020 and 2024.
A 2022 survey showed Trump with 85% approval among Louisiana Republicans, while Cassidy's approval among GOP voters dropped below 50% after his impeachment vote.
The math doesn't work for an incumbent senator running against Trump's handpicked candidate in a closed Republican primary.
Trump's endorsement fits his pattern of going after Republicans who voted to impeach or convict him.
Of the ten House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump in 2021, only two sought re-election and survived their primaries.
Most Senate Republicans who voted to convict either retired or resigned rather than face Trump-backed challenges.
Louisiana presents Trump's best opportunity — a deep red state where he dominates and the closed primary system gives his endorsed candidate a major advantage.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune reportedly urged Trump to stay out of the Louisiana race and back Cassidy.
Trump ignored Thune's advice, signaling that Senate leadership can't protect impeachment Republicans from his wrath.
The message to other Republicans couldn't be clearer.
Cross Trump on something he cares about deeply, and he'll work to end your political career no matter how safe your seat seems.
Cassidy gambled that his 2021 impeachment vote would be forgotten by 2026.
Trump's endorsement of Julia Letlow proves that bet was dead wrong.
Sources:
- Nick R. Hamilton, "Trump Endorses Letlow Over Cassidy in Louisiana Senate Race," Slay News, January 20, 2026.
- Melinda Deslatte, "Louisiana Republican Party censures Sen. Bill Cassidy following vote to convict Trump," CNN Politics, February 14, 2021.
- Phil Mattingly and Manu Raju, "Here Are The 7 Republicans Who Voted To Convict Donald Trump," NPR, February 15, 2021.
- Nicholas Wu, "GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy draws primary challenge citing Trump impeachment vote," NBC News, December 5, 2024.
