A Republican representative seeking re-election has privately vented that President Donald Trump’s executive actions are harming the party and may doom even “safe” red seats like hers.
Oklahoma Rep. Stephanie Bice, a top MAGA ally, told college students that Trump is not helping voters’ perception of Republicans by renaming Lake Ontario and feuding with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, according to a recording obtained by The Bulwark.
“We’re not helping ourselves today when we decide to rename Lake Ontario ‘Lake America,’” Bice said to Oklahoma State University students on Thursday, according to The Bulwark. “I mean, yeah, these are not—this does not help the case, right?”
Bice’s district has an R+9 rating per the Cook Political Report—but she suggested in the audio that she fears Republican voters in her Central Oklahoma district may stay home on Election Day given Trump’s sagging approval rating.
“The challenge that we have is that we have to get over the narrative that ‘I don’t like this guy, so I’m going to vote for the Democrat,’” Bice said, according to the Bulwark. “Because I’m telling you right now, I’m hearing it already.”
She reportedly continued, “And what happens is that’ll impact me because... Two things will either happen. They’re going to vote for the Democrat, and they may split [the] ticket and vote for me and a few others, or—this is my bigger fear right now—people don’t go vote.”
Bice said in the recording that a Republican executive told her they are exhausted with Trump.
“I was at a board meeting yesterday with a group, and one of the execs said to me, ‘I’m a Republican. I’ve been a Republican for a long time, but I have Trump fatigue,’” Bice said, according to The Bulwark. “It’s a fair statement, you know?”
A spokesman for Bice’s re-election campaign told the site that Bice was merely “relaying a comment made by someone else and discussing the importance of Republicans turning out and voting for the entire ticket.”
The spokesman added, “Congresswoman Bice strongly supports President Trump and his work to secure the border, rebuild our economy, strengthen our military, and put America First. She is proud to have his endorsement and looks forward to continuing to fight with the president to defeat the Democrat socialists. Any suggestion otherwise takes her comments out of context.”
Bice voted against impeaching Trump after the Jan. 6 raid at the U.S. Capitol and remains closely aligned with the president. She was photographed with Trump in the Oval Office in May 2025 as he signed joint resolutions into law.
Trump endorsed Bice’s re-election bid in March, calling her a “Highly Respected America First Congresswoman.” He told his Truth Social followers that “SHE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”
