WILLIAMSTOWN, Ky. — Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., had a friendly crowd, a keynote time slot and the praise of a local state lawmaker who introduced him as the “archetype of conservatism.”

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It wasn’t until 18 minutes into his remarks — which meandered from his days in local government to the drudgery of legislating in Washington, D.C. — that Massie nonchalantly pivoted to President Donald Trump, the man trying to end his career in Congress.

“By the way,” Massie told the roughly 75 people who turned out here last week for the Grant County Republican Party’s Lincoln-Reagan Day dinner, “I vote with the GOP, regardless of what you see on TV, 91% of the time. But in the 9% of the time, if they’re covering up for pedophiles, bankrupting the country or starting another war, I don’t vote that way.”

Trump is backing former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein in next month’s Republican primary in Kentucky’s 4th District — a revenge mission after Massie pushed to release the Jeffrey Epstein files and opposed the president on other key votes.

“Massie is a complete and total disaster as a congressman and, frankly, as a human being,” Trump said last month at an event in the district where Gallrein joined him onstage.

As he fights for his political survival, Massie hopes to make Trump more of an afterthought in places like Grant County, where the president won with more than 80% of the vote in the 2024 election.

It’s an effort that requires trust from his longtime constituents. Last week’s GOP dinner, where attendees gathered inside a special events barn and picked from a buffet of beef and potatoes and green beans and salad, allowed Massie, first elected in 2012, to make a case for why he still deserves it.

“I read the bills. I try to make the decision based on what is best. I try to do the things that I campaigned on,” Massie told them. “And sometimes it means voting no.”

Massie then took a swipe at Gallrein, who had been invited and expected to speak at the dinner but canceled at the last minute. A spokesperson said he had two funerals to attend.

“The problem with Washington, D.C., is that you got people that stand at podiums like this and make you all kinds of promises, and then they go up there and go along to get along, and they forget about all the promises,” Massie said. “I’m running against a guy whose main thing is he will promise you he will go along to get along. I don’t think we need a rubber stamp.”

In response to questions for this article, Gallrein spokesperson Alexandra Wilkes issued a statement that read: “Captain Gallrein is honored that President Trump has been so supportive of his campaign to defeat every liberal’s favorite Republican, Thomas Massie.”

Massie is known for his fiscally conservative and libertarian leanings, including concerns about the federal deficit and opposition to wars of choice, like the one Trump has plunged into in Iran. In an interview after the dinner, Massie said he has encountered plenty of voters who continue to support the president while appreciating their congressman as a “fighter.”

“There’s a portion of the electorate who doesn’t believe that Congress should be independent,” Massie told NBC News. “They believe that, when the Republicans control the White House and the Congress, that Congress should just do whatever the president wants. But that’s not how our government’s set up.”

Independent and public polling of the primary has been scarce, but Massie said the surveys he has seen show him leading.

“It’s an interesting quandary, because the district has very much been pro-Trump,” said Shauna Reilly, a political science professor at Northern Kentucky University. “But they also have re-elected Massie numerous times, and so he seems to be well-liked in the district, and I suspect that he will probably be successful in this.”

“Massie is his own dude,” Reilly added, “and he’s running his own campaign, and I think like or lump it, that’s sort of how he’s going to approach this.”

Gallrein, a farmer, has hewed closely to the White House. His campaign produced an ad highlighting Trump’s endorsement and the many compliments the president had for him during a March event in the district. And Gallrein and Trump-aligned organizations working to lift him out of the primary are outspending Massie and his super PAC allies on Kentucky’s airwaves.

Of the more than $12.4 million spent on ads in the race through Monday, $6.8 million had come from Gallrein or outside spending groups airing commercials to boost him or attack Massie, according to AdImpact, an ad-tracking firm. The Republican Jewish Coalition Victory PAC hit Massie for opposing the Iran war, while the Trump-aligned group MAGA KY has focused on immigration and border security provisions included in Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, which Massie voted against.

Meanwhile, the Massie-aligned Kentucky 4th PAC has aired a spot called “Tucked Tail And Ran” that uses war imagery to emphasize Gallrein’s departure from the GOP during Trump’s first term. The ad depicts the veteran Gallrein leaving Trump behind in a foxhole.

Massie also has accused Gallrein of running away from the campaign trail. At the moment, there are no debates scheduled between the two.

“It’s like they have a tracker on my car and keep from getting within 50 miles of me,” Massie said. “He is scared to answer any question, even if I don’t get to ask the questions.”

Gallrein’s campaign did not respond to Massie’s accusations that Gallrein has dodged public events. On the subject of debates, Massie has had “nearly 15 years … to make a case to these people,” Gallrein said at a recent event, as reported by the Louisville Courier Journal, and now “wants a platform to bad-mouth the president, the Republican Party and the conservatives.”

“Our records speak for themselves,” Gallrein added. “What’s going to change on that stage?”

The Grant County dinner here last week had built-in advantages for Massie, who was given headliner status and introduced in glowing terms by state Rep. Savannah Maddox. Gallrein sent Jennifer O’Connor, a deputy campaign manager, to represent him.

Massie spoke for more than a half-hour. O’Connor, reading prepared remarks off her phone, spoke for five minutes.

“Thomas Massie has failed the voters of this district and will continue to do so time and again, joining with the radical Democrats to block the president and the Republican Party,” she said. “This list is long, but a few examples stand out. He voted against President Trump’s plan to secure the border and keep our nation and neighborhoods safe.”

From his front-row seat, Massie stared her down and cut her off. “False,” he said.

O’Connor glared back at the congressman. “Please,” she said. “I did not interrupt you.”

Massie shot back: “I didn’t lie about you.”

In the interview, Massie explained how he had navigated 14 years of GOP evolution, from the tail of the Tea Party wave that he rode into office to through the Trump years.

“What I’ve done,” Massie said, “is to make sure that I have my own brand.”

Back in the audience, there was uncertainty about how the May 19 primary will unfold for him.

Terry Centers, who led the room in the Pledge of Allegiance while sporting a Massie button, said he has always appreciated Massie’s honesty while brushing off the many disagreements he and Trump have had over the years.

Does Centers think Massie can overcome a Trump-led onslaught this time?

“I think he will win in this county,” Centers said, stopping short of predicting wider success.

Shirley Howard, who offered the blessing before dinner, said he was undecided between Massie and Gallrein. Unlike Centers, he was not eager to hazard any predictions.

“It’s going to be close,” Howard said. “This is still pretty much Trump country here.”