Nicolle Wallace spots big problem with Trump's revenge tour that could haunt the GOP

President Donald Trump has been on a tear knocking out lawmakers in primaries for perceived disloyalty, most recently taking down Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY). But that is not necessarily going to serve his party well, MS NOW's Nicolle Wallace argued on Wednesday.

In fact, she said, it may only be causing his party to circle the drain faster in the midterms.

To explain, she quoted a recent observation from political strategist Dan Pfeiffer: "Yes, the incumbent president can influence primaries inside his own party. And yes, Trump is getting rid of people he believes wronged him. But spending nearly $20 million to defeat a Republican in a district Donald Trump won by 35 points, is not the flex people think it is. At best, this is a Pyrrhic victory, and Trump's revenge tour is a big problem for the GOP moving forward. Trump is a massive drag on his party, and to win, many Republicans will need to show some independence from the deeply unpopular president."

Indeed, the quote continued, "The smarter, savvier, less megalomaniacal leader would give his party the room to do what they need to do to win. Trump is incapable of doing so, and the GOP will pay a price for it."

The other problem, Wallace noted, is that Trump is now creating a contingent of lame-duck Republicans with nothing left to lose in opposing him — and they are now doing just that, with Cassidy leading the way. He "joined Democrats to become the 50th yes vote on a war powers resolution, opposed Trump's ballroom funding and reconciliation, and called Texas AG Ken Paxton, Trump's freshly-endorsed challenger for John Cornyn's Senate seat, a, quote, 'felon.'"

This defiance, she continued, is "likely just the beginning" because it's not just Cassidy and Massie opposing Trump now — lawmakers rejected Trump's order to include a harsh voter suppression bill into bipartisan housing reform legislation, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) flatly refused Trump's demand to fire the Senate parliamentarian for ruling his ballroom funding out of order.

"Even administration ally Senator John Kennedy, expressed doubt about DOJ's $1.8 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund," Wallace added. "Now Cornyn could join their ranks."

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