On May 19th, they shot Thomas Massie.

Not with a bullet. With ballots paid for by the newest form of the MAGA Movement and Israeli interests.

Over 18 million dollars was spent to unseat Kentucky’s 14 year incumbent US House Representative. His political execution was expensive, public, dramatic, and above all else: meant as a warning.

His crime? Bravery. His ability to vote no.

The warning wasn’t meant for Thomas Massie. He’s gone. The warning was for you, the voters. The warning was for every Representative in Congress who still believes in radical ideas like People over Party, The Constitution, or Fiscal Responsibility.

The warning said: If you defy us, we will destroy you.

The size of the spending should concern everyone. This became the most expensive U.S. House primary in history, with over 30 million dollars in ads alone. Kentucky reports that less than 6 percent of the money came from Kentuckians. The rest? Billionaires, super PACs, and foreign policy interests.

Why? Because Massie didn’t vote with the yes men. He voted with his district.

He said no to military action against Iran and Venezuela. He’s saying no to the new anti-weaponization fund. He voted no against overspending. He voted no when the GOP expected him to vote yes.

He didn’t stop a lot of it. He just refused to salute. He voted according to his conscience, whether he was one of the few voices or the only voice.

President Trump hates perceived disloyalty more than anything. So he and his friend Chris LaCivita used MAGA KY to spend 7 million dollars purchasing Thomas Massie’s House seat.

It wasn’t just Massie’s no’s that upset his enemies. It was one of his largest yes campaigns: The Epstein Files. Massie co led the discharge petition to force their release, slapping back against President Trump and Establishment Leadership.

Thomas Massie has said that he will read the names of every alleged and redacted client from the Epstein Files on the House floor for the record if the DOJ continues to withhold or inappropriately black out the identities of powerful figures.

Why is our Federal Government still running coverage for pedophiles again? Of course. Status Quo.

Other notable endeavors include sponsoring the PRIME Act to allow ranchers to sell beef directly to consumers without USDA red tape, after COVID proved that Government Shutdowns could break our food supply in less than “two weeks to flatten the curve”. He filed to audit the Fed and abolish the ATF. He introduced a bill that would require AIPAC to register as a foreign agent.

There’s a reason Massie joked during his concession speech after his defeat: “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.”

That’s not xenophobia. That’s basic math. When 9 million dollars of political campaign money comes from the Israeli lobby via AIPAC, and your replacement’s biggest donors are Paul Singer and Miriam Adelson, the joke writes itself.

Congressional Speaker of the House Mike Johnson made the new rules clear: We need people here who are not counterproductive to the agenda.

Translation: Vote yes, or we’ll spend millions of dollars to end you.

They didn’t shoot Massie because he was wrong. They shot him because he was usually uncomfortably right and wouldn’t shut up.

They spent 32 million dollars to make sure the next guy stays quiet. They spent this much before; they’ll spend even more the next time a Congressman gets punchy. Whether it’s in Kentucky, New York, Texas, or South Dakota, if you’re working against the Establishment or the Deep State for too long, and doing it too loudly, you won’t be working long.

Next time DC drops a 2,000 page bill at midnight or the next time you see a constitutionally questionable bill with zero Republican no votes, remember.

They shot Massie to scare them into submission. 

They shot Massie to scare you.

If you’re not scared, you’re not paying attention.

Collin Duprel is a guest columnist for the Rapid City Post. Opinions expressed may not necessarily represent the views of the Rapid City Post, its affiliates, or advertisers.