As Senate GOP turns on him, Trump warns he’ll be ‘the last Republican president’
Trump appears to have lost interest in the GOP agenda and is almost singularly focused on his voting legislation.
Ryan Cooper 
The relationship between President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans has hit a critical breaking point. This week, the President threw a wrench into the legislative works, stalling the confirmation of his own nominee and threatening to withhold support for a vital surveillance law unless specific terms are met.
Rising Tensions in Washington
Trump’s abrupt decision to delay the confirmation of Jay Clayton as national intelligence director just hours before his hearing added fuel to an already burning fire between the White House and the Senate. The volatility continued as lawmakers broke their silence regarding the President's deal to end the Iran war, which Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., labeled on X as the "worst foreign policy blunder in decades."
This friction marks a sharp departure from last year, when the GOP was unified in its efforts to pass major spending and tax cuts. Now, with the November election looming, Trump is pivoting away from the broader GOP agenda to focus almost exclusively on legislation requiring proof of citizenship, a move that currently faces steep odds in the chamber.
The Challenge for Leadership
Senate Majority Leader John Thune finds himself navigating this fractured landscape, frequently pushing back on presidential demands—such as eliminating the filibuster—that lack the necessary votes to pass. The President has raised the stakes, warning in a recent social media post that he would be "the last Republican president" should the voting bill fail to advance.
Despite the pressure, Thune retains support from allies like Sen. Mike Rounds, who described him as the "stable force" in the Capitol. Meanwhile, Trump continues to advance controversial items, including a $1.776 billion settlement fund and a nomination for Bill Pulte, an acting intelligence director whose lack of conventional experience has drawn scrutiny.
As the party navigates this internal divide, some lawmakers have openly soured on the administration. Following their own primary losses to Trump-backed challengers, former allies like Cassidy and John Cornyn have transitioned into vocal critics, with Cornyn notably sharing a fable about a scorpion’s inability to change its nature.
