White House officials will host Kentucky state Sen. Aaron Reed in the coming weeks for a discussion about challenging GOP Rep. Thomas Massie in next year’s Republican primary, according to two people granted anonymity to describe the private plans.

President Donald Trump and his political operation have been searching for a candidate to challenge Massie over his opposition to the president’s “big, beautiful bill” and his strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. Trump political advisers Chris LaCivita and pollster Tony Fabrizio have launched a super PAC directed at defeating Massie that’s already running a TV ad attacking the seven-term incumbent.

Massie is embracing the challenge, fundraising off MAGA’s slights and telling reporters last week he raised $120,000 in a single day off of Trump’s threats to campaign “really hard” against him.

Massie — who previously endorsed Reed for state Senate, and whom Reed in return had called “one of America’s greatest Congressmen” — did not immediately return a request for comment. Reed, a former Navy SEAL, was first elected to the Kentucky state house last year.

Sen. Thom Tillis, a two-term North Carolina Republican who was expected to contest one of 2026’s toughest Senate races, said Sunday he will not seek re-election.

Tillis made the announcement after voting “no” on a procedural vote to advance President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” — the cornerstone of his domestic policy agenda. Trump subsequently attacked Tillis in a series of social media posts.

“In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species,“ Tillis said in a statement.

He continued: “As many of my colleagues have noticed over the last year, and at times even joked about, I haven’t exactly been excited about running for another term. That is true since the choice is between spending another six years navigating the political theatre and partisan gridlock in Washington or spending that time with the love of my life Susan, our two children, three beautiful grandchildren, and the rest of our extended family back home. It’s not a hard choice, and I will not be seeking re-election.”

Tillis’ retirement sets up what could be a wild and crowded GOP primary in the Tar Heel State. On the Democratic side, Rep. Wiley Nickel is already in the race, and national party leaders are hoping ex-Gov. Roy Cooper enters the race.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin is insisting President Donald Trump’s sweeping domestic megabill doesn’t break his promise not to cut Medicaid, even as the Congressional Budget Office estimates 7.8 million people would lose access if it passes.

Instead, Mullin (R-Okla.) told NBC’s Kristen Welker on Sunday, the “Big Beautiful Bill” is eliminating fraud, waste and abuse that Republicans say is rampant in the program.

“What is so hard about having a work requirement there with someone that has no medical conditions and no dependents?” he said on “Meet the Press.” “We don’t pay people in this country to be lazy. We want to give them an opportunity. And when they’re going through a hard time, we want to give them a helping hand. That’s what Medicaid was designed for.”

The Senate GOP voted narrowly to move to a general debate on the package on Saturday. Final passage could come Monday. But one Republican, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, voted against moving the bill forward due to its Medicaid language.

Democrats, too, are looking to seize on the cuts to win back working class voters who have moved toward Trump since his political rise.

Mullin argued that Republicans are seeking to future-proof the program, refocusing Medicaid on what it was “designed for.”

“There’s 35 million people under the poverty line inside the United States,” Mullin told Welker. “And there’s 70 million people that are signed up for Medicaid. You’re going to tell me that there’s not room to cut fraud, waste, and abuse in the program?”