GOP senator cursed out by elections staffer for Trump impeachment vote

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) got a curse-filled chewing out by a staffer from the National Republican Senatorial Committee over his vote to convict President Donald Trump in the Jan. 6 impeachment, Punchbowl News reported on Friday.

This comes as Cassidy finds himself in dire trouble in the primary for his re-election, with two candidates, one of whom is endorsed by Trump, running to his right.

"Former Rep. John Fleming (R-La.), a co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, is pulling a significant chunk of the vote in public and private polling, muddying what should’ve been a glide path to the Senate for the Trump-backed Rep. Julia Letlow (R-La.)," said the report. "Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) voted to convict Trump after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, which was always going to be a problem in a Republican primary. Cassidy and his allies have been dumping money on TV ads hitting Letlow. It’s highly unlikely any candidate will clear 50% in the GOP primary, meaning this race is headed to a June runoff. Polling shows all three relatively close together. Letlow has a lead in two recent independent polls."

Behind the scenes, most GOP strategists expect that, while any two of the three could emerge as the top vote-getters, either Letlow or Fleming would be the favorites to defeat Cassidy in a runoff.

The angry call came as tensions have grown between Cassidy and the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

"Cassidy is furious at the NRSC and Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s political machine because he feels they haven’t fully supported his reelection bid," said the report. While Thune held a $650,000 fundraiser with Cassidy in Baton Rouge and the NRSC has aired ads on his behalf, "in a tense call with the NRSC, Cassidy said the committee wasn’t spending enough on his behalf during the primary. NRSC Executive Director Jennifer DeCasper, in a response that included profanity, shot back that Cassidy shouldn’t have voted to convict Trump, according to multiple sources familiar with the call."

Cassidy is not alone among Senate Republicans in facing an existential threat to re-nomination. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) has trailed state Attorney General Ken Paxton in nearly all polls for months, and with the two in a runoff, Trump has effectively abandoned Cornyn to his fate.