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Massie knocks Trump ballroom after primary loss: ‘Looks like the Roman Empire’

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by Sarah Davis - 05/20/26 8:07 AM ET

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by Sarah Davis - 05/20/26 8:07 AM ET

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Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) did not withhold his anger toward President Trump after his primary loss late Tuesday.

“I got to watch Fox [News] for the first time in 18 months, and there was the president talking about — by the way, while gas is almost $5 and diesel’s almost $6 — they’re talking about this big ballroom they’re going to build,” Massie said during his concession speech.

“And it looks like … architecture from the Roman Empire,” he continued. “I see a few analogies there, and people are just trying to make ends meet.”

The president has made several controversial updates to the White House during his second term in office, including his decision to tear down the East Wing and replace it with a ballroom. Trump has said that the costs of this building project, which are estimated to be around $400 million, will be fully covered by private donors.

Massie lost his reelection bid Tuesday in a tight primary race against Trump-endorsed candidate, former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein. Gallrein received around 55 percent of the vote, compared to the incumbent‘s 45 percent, according to Decision Desk HQ.

The result brings an end to Massie‘s 14-year run representing Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District. His defeat was Trump’s latest success in his efforts to oust members of the Republican Party that are critical of his administration.

Trump recruited Gallrein to run against the GOP lawmaker after he pushed back against several of his administration’s key policies: from the Iran war to the Justice Department’s handling of the files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The president also panned the Kentucky Republican earlier Tuesday for posting an old endorsement message, which he said came during the first Trump administration.

“Can you imagine ‘Congressman’ Thomas Massie putting out a many years ago Endorsement of him, by me, when he knows that he wasn’t endorsed, but that I proudly endorsed Ed Gallrein? The reason is that Massie has turned out to be the Worst Congressman in the Republican Party,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “This shows what a totally dishonest and desperate guy Massie is, and I hope the Voters aren’t fooled by his deception!”

Massie took a swing at the Gallrein in his concession speech.

“I would have come out sooner, but I had to call my opponent and concede, and it took a while to find Ed Gallrein in Tel Aviv,” he said, referencing his rival’s campaign contributions from the Republican Jewish Coalition PAC.

Pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC celebrated the retired Navy SEAL’s win in a social media post, calling Massie the “anti-Israel incumbent.”

Gallrein thanked Trump in his acceptance speech late Tuesday.

“I want to thank President Trump for his support, his endorsement and his counsel as I navigated this campaign, which is a journey of unto itself,” he told supporters.

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