Last week, Speaker Mike Johnson and his top aides embarked on a mission to Mar-a-Lago. Their goal? To secure a Donald Trump endorsement for incumbent House Republican Mike Bost, who is facing a challenge from a primary rival backed by Rep. Matt Gaetz.
Multiple GOP sources confirm that Johnson lobbied Trump to support Bost against his MAGA-aligned adversary, Darren Bailey, in the southern Illinois district. This move signals Johnson’s strategic use of his relationship with the former president amidst internal GOP primary battles that could potentially reshape Congress.
Other Republicans, including Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina and Rep. Max Miller, a freshman from Ohio and former Trump aide, also personally urged Trump to back Bost. Hudson, who leads the House GOP’s campaign arm, was present at the Mar-a-Lago meeting with Trump.
Trump announced his endorsement of Bost a day after Johnson and Hudson’s visit. The pair were in Florida for an annual House GOP leadership retreat. As Republicans made their case for Bost, a loyal Trump supporter and five-term incumbent, they hoped to send a clear message to Gaetz: The House GOP would not be remade in his image.
“Seeing as how President Trump endorsed Mike Bost, Matt always finds himself on the wrong side of history,” Miller told CNN. “He wants more chaos. He has mommy and daddy issues to work out.” Gaetz responded by criticizing Miller for attempting to “lecture” him.
In an interview, Gaetz explained his support for Bailey and his desire to change Congress. “Look, I’m on a mission to change Congress, and I can’t do it with the people who are currently here,” Gaetz told CNN. “I need new people. I need better people. I need better options in a lot of these Republican primaries. And I’ll be traveling the country to try to get more people elected.”
The GOP’s collective effort to protect Bost is not driven by fears of losing the seat to a far-right candidate in the Republican primary. Instead, the focus is on Bost’s role as a leadership ally who supports the party’s agenda, a stark contrast to the Gaetz faction of the party that frequently clashes with party leaders.
Since becoming Speaker in October, Johnson has visited nearly two dozen states to support other GOP incumbents and expand the majority in the upcoming November elections, according to Johnson’s political team.
Republican leaders could also promote a Bost endorsement to Trump because of Bost’s loyalty to the former president, highlighting Trump’s continuing influence over the House GOP and the party’s base.
In an interview, Bost suggested that Gaetz is targeting him due to a personal grudge. Bost recalled an incident during the speakership battle last fall when Gaetz “started screaming from the middle of the room” at McCarthy. Bost, who was part of a group that then yelled at Gaetz and told him to sit down, later lunged at him in the room, according to multiple witnesses.
“As Matt does, he wants to be the center of attention, and that’s why he does the things like he’s doing right now to me,” Bost said in an interview. Bost added: “He’s not liked in my district. Matter of fact, it may gain me votes by him coming there.”
Gaetz insisted that his campaign against Bost is not personal, but rather a critique of Bost’s past support for aiding Ukraine and his ties to lobbyists and special interests. “I don’t fight those things out with my fists in some sort of strange brawl,” Gaetz said. “I fight with my words, and that’s what I will be doing in Illinois.”
Behind the scenes, Bost has taken steps to demonstrate his loyalty. Bost and his wife used to send prayer cards from his constituents to the then-president, which Trump once brought up to Bost during a flight on Air Force One and thanked him for doing, according to a member who was on the plane.
The struggle to secure Trump’s support highlights the GOP reality: No one can influence congressional primaries like the former president. This dynamic is evident in House and Senate GOP primaries across the country, where loyalty to Trump remains a dominant issue as candidates court conservative voters.
However, the battle for Trump’s approval has also stirred up controversy within the GOP, particularly in the primary fight to represent Ohio’s 9th Congressional District. After the GOP leadership’s candidate, Craig Riedel, was caught on tape criticizing Trump, multiple Republicans withdrew their endorsement, leading party leaders to scramble for a new candidate.
Despite the political maneuvering and internal tensions, the GOP remains focused on securing a majority in the upcoming elections. Yet, the actions of figures like Gaetz, who is considering targeting other GOP incumbents, continue to stir controversy within the party.
“I don’t like it,” Rep. Carlos Gimenez, a Florida Republican said of Gaetz campaigning against Bost. “You know it’s a colleague campaigning against another colleague. And that to me is not a very smart move. Now we are going to have to fight to keep the majority. And in the House, the majority is not everything, it’s the only thing. And maybe some people still don’t understand that.”
Despite the criticism, Gaetz remains undeterred. “I would say Republicans need to start acting like Republicans again,” Gaetz said. “And then they’d have nothing to fear.”
Contributors to this report include CNN’s Sam Fossum, Morgan Rimmer, and Christine Park.