Former President Donald Trump pressed that an opponent should enter the Republican primary against Rep. Chip Roy, despite the filing deadline lapsing last week.
“Has any smart and energetic Republican in the Great State of Texas decided to run in the Primary against RINO Congressman Chip Roy?” Mr. Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social. “For the right person, he is very beatable. If interested, let me know!!!”
Mr. Roy has an unopposed pathway to the Republican nomination in his district north of San Antonio. He will have a Democratic challenger, scientist Kristin Hook, in the general election.
The district is deeply conservative, and Mr. Roy bested his previous Democratic opponent by more than 84,000 votes.
Fellow GOP lawmakers came to Mr. Roy’s defense following Mr. Trump’s comments, with some scoffing at the notion that the conservative was a RINO, or Republican in name only.
“I stand with [Rep. Chip Roy],” said Rep. Thomas Massie, Kentucky Republican, on X. “He fights for what he believes and he’s one of the most conservative members of Congress. I can tell you with certainty that this shortsighted effort to intimidate Chip will not work.”
Mr. Roy and Mr. Trump have a history of butting heads. The Texan was one of the few Republicans who voted to certify the 2020 election and was critical of the president in the days after the Jan. 6, 2021, protest at the U.S. Capitol.
Mr. Trump also went after Mr. Roy when the lawmaker ran for the House Republican Conference chairmanship in 2021 — a post eventually won by Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York.
“Can’t imagine Republican House Members would go with Chip Roy — he has not done a great job and will probably be successfully primaried in his own district,” Mr. Trump said in a press release at the time. “I support Elise, by far, over Chip!”
Mr. Roy has publicly supported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis throughout the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Mr. Trump holds a dominant lead in the shrinking field of candidates, while Mr. DeSantis has been losing his grip on second place to former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
Mr. Roy appeared on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show alongside Mr. DeSantis during a campaign stop in Iowa on Monday, saying voters, not polls, will decide the winner of the Jan. 15 caucuses.
“We’re for principals, not princes. We don’t coronate anybody,” Mr. Roy said. “We don’t let polls decide. It’s the American people through this process and the people of Iowa, who take it very seriously.”
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.
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