Tensions boiled over between President Donald Trump and Republican Senator Bill Cassidy when the pair came face-to-face in the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday.
Trump, 80, was on Capitol Hill to attend the Republican Senate luncheon where Cassidy confronted the president about the war with Iran and his memorandum of understanding, calling the president’s foreign policy move a blunder, according to a person in the room.
The pair went at it even as others tried to step in. It came after Cassidy was one of four GOP senators to vote for a war powers resolution to prevent the president from resuming military force against Iran on Tuesday infuriating the president.
Senators leaving the luncheon were stony faced as they fled past reporters. Sen. Ted Cruz described the meeting as “spirited” and “lively” while others tried to downplay the yelling match between the two men.
Cassidy it appeared had been itching for a confrontation with the president who backed his primary challenger who won the primary against the Louisiana senator earlier this year.
At one point, Cassidy even stopped calling Trump “Mr. President” and started referring to him as “brother,” sources told Punchbowl News.
After the meeting, Cassidy appeared sarcastic when he told reporters that the meeting had gone “swimmingly.” The senator took the opportunity to challenge Trump while the president was complaining about why GOP senators would vote for the war powers resolution, which passed 50 to 48.
Cassidy told reporters gathered in the U.S. Capitol afterwards that the president raised his voice and the senator lost his temper, which he admitted was not appropriate, calling it the “Irish” in him. He said Trump even brought up his primary loss. Cassidy said he eventually sat down and tried to de-escalate the situation.
But even his fellow senators declined to publicly back Trump.
“They harbor bad feelings,” GOP Sen. Jim Justice observed afterward. “Maybe that’s fair.”
The president also went after Sen. David McCormick in the meeting for not being present to vote against the war powers resolution, a source told MS NOW, even though the Pennsylvania Republican was literally traveling with the president on Tuesday when the vote took place and it would have passed even if he had been there.
The Trump-Cassidy showdown came just hours after Trump blindsided Republicans and sent them scrambling by refusing to sign a landmark bipartisan housing bill just as GOP members were hoping to take a victory lap and promote the legislation to help struggling Americans ahead of the midterms.
Trump said he would not sign it and demanded Republicans pass his so-called SAVE America Act first, but Republicans after the luncheon attempted to downplay the president throwing their plans into chaos. Even if Trump does not sign the bill, it automatically goes into law in 10 days.
Senators in the room said the president did the vast majority of the talking and only took a few questions.
After he emerged from the meeting, Trump claimed they had a “really great meeting” and said he was proud of the Republican Party before appearing to allude to the confrontation.
“We like our leader, we like everybody really in the room. I don’t like a few people, but that’s okay,” Trump said, but he did not name names.
The president exited the U.S. Capitol without taking any questions from reporters‚ an unusual move for Trump.
