Shots, via Salena Zito:
Things that did not age well–by a lot. pic.twitter.com/S5xfwUTjLE
— ZitoSalena (@ZitoSalena) May 6, 2026
Chaser, via the Wall Street Journal – and reality:
President Trump scored decisive victories in a slate of Indiana state Senate primaries Tuesday, a sign that his grip on the party’s base remains firm after he pushed to oust GOP lawmakers who rebuffed his demands to redraw the state’s congressional maps.
Trump and his Republican allies worked to defeat seven incumbent GOP state senators up for re-election who voted against a Trump-backed, mid-decade redistricting proposal last year. Trump also endorsed a GOP candidate competing for an open state Senate seat, which was vacated by a Republican who didn’t seek re-election after rejecting Trump’s proposal.
Election returns from the Associated Press showed that five of the seven Trump-backed challengers won in their primaries, including Blake Fiechter, Tracey Powell, Michelle Davis, Brian Schmutzler and Trevor De Vries. Jeff Ellington, who was endorsed by Trump in the open seat, also prevailed in his primary.
One incumbent managed to eke out a win, and another race is too close to call. Even if Trump’s endorsees don’t get those final two seats, Trump made his point. People rallied to Trump because he fights, and Republican voters aren’t interested in milquetoast minders of the status quo. Perhaps especially after a third assassination attempt on Trump, voters want real change, not a slavish devotion to the Marquess de Queensbury approach that hasn’t been reciprocated by Democrats since Tip O’Neill … if then.
Politico backpedaled on the narrative quickly:
Trump’s loyal and energized supporters turned out to punish the incumbents, showing that his endorsement remains the gold-standard of GOP politics. That’s a bright flashing red warning to any Republicans who might be eyeing a break from Trump as he approaches the back half of his second term in office.
The victories came after a combined $13.5 million in spending poured into typically low-profile state Senate races, most of it for Trump’s candidates.
“It’s a sign that the party’s ready to follow the president on this and also turn over a new leaf, and get younger, newer leaders in the state Senate,” said David McIntosh, president of the Club for Growth, which put more than $2 million in the race.
He described the retribution effort in a safe-red state as important for the future of the party, both because it allows for gerrymandering the congressional map ahead of 2028 and for the message its ends to the rest of the country: “It’s a signal to Republicans everywhere: we want you to think of yourself as a team, help each other win, and don’t just be lone actors out there beating your chest or proving your ground, and I think that’s an important signal as the party gets ready for the midterms.”
This demonstrates something significant in the GOP, and it’s not just Trump’s pull with voters. These incumbents lost their primaries – even with all of the usual benefits of incumbency – because they didn’t bother to ask voters what they want. Had these incumbents truly engaged with their primary electorates, perhaps they would have chosen to follow Trump on his redistricting fight as a way to break past Democrat obstruction and demagoguery.
One can even understand why Indiana Republicans initially balked at the redistricting strategy last year. It’s outside the norm, and the state GOP may not have had the same gain potential as in Texas and Florida. However, when Democrats in California and Virginia jumped into the redistricting fray, the refusal from these GOP incumbents looked less like strategic discernment and a lot more like claiming conscientious-objector status from Trump and MAGA.
Well, Republican voters in Indiana noticed, and they responded. That’s how primaries work, and it’s why primaries work.
This story isn’t over yet. The new nominees still have to win in the general election, and the lame ducks probably still won’t smell the coffee and start redistricting now. Assuming the GOP holds its control of the state legislature, though, voters and Trump will get a new map for 2028, at least.
Note: The headline reference is to a classically cheesy pop song from the 1970s. Supposedly, the label had to issue a radio version without the sirens because people kept pulling over when the song started. It’s probably an urban legend, but it’s an amusing one.
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