- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared in Hebron to publicly back Republican congressional challenger Ed Gallrein ahead of Kentucky’s May 19 primary.
- The Massie-Gallrein contest has drawn national attention, major political surrogates and record-breaking spending in what is now the most expensive House primary in U.S. history.
- Hegseth criticized Rep. Thomas Massie as an “obstructionist” while praising Gallrein’s military background and alignment with President Donald Trump’s agenda.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth faced a crowd of Trump supporters at the Hilton DoubleTree on the campus of the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.
His message was clear—he backs Ed Gallrein.
Hegseth briefly visited Northern Kentucky on Monday, May 18, on the eve of Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District Republican primary between incumbent Rep. Thomas Massie and challenger Ed Gallrein – now the most expensive House primary in U.S. history. Hegseth was invited to Northern Kentucky on behalf of the Gallrein campaign and America First Works, a nonprofit conservative advocacy organization
Hegseth is one of several national political figures who have been deployed to Northern Kentucky over the past few days, either on behalf of the White House or, conversely, to bolster grassroots support for Massie. Overall, the influencers’ goal is to persuade as many registered Republicans as possible to vote for either candidate.
On Saturday, May 16, Massie held rallies across the congressional district alongside notable political figures, including Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Colorado’s 4th Congressional District Rep. Lauren Boebert, Ohio’s 8th Congressional District Rep. Warren Davidson, Indiana’s 5th Congressional District Rep. Victoria Spartz, and Kyle Rittenhouse, among others.
Boebert, in particular, caught Trump’s ire on Truth Social for appearing alongside Massie, prompting the president to threaten to primary the congresswoman.
Hegseth’s presence in Northern Kentucky exemplifies the stakes of the race, as polling suggests margins are razor-thin. With the world–and Trump–closely watching, surrogates are doing everything they can to eke out every last vote. Kentucky is a closed primary state, meaning that only registered Republicans may vote on May 19, dramatically limiting the voting pool.
Hegseth’s appearance in Hebron is a highly unusual move for the head of the Pentagon, an organization that traditionally does not encourage military members to endorse or campaign for political candidates in order to avoid the appearance of bias.
Hegseth told the crowd that he was at the event “in my personal capacity as a private citizen.” Critics have accused Hegseth of potentially violating the Hatch Act, a federal law restricting the partisan political activities of most federal employees.
During Hegseth’s speech, he touted Gallrein’s military record while criticizing Massie for not being a team player— a charge Trump has consistently leveled against Massie.
“At some point, being against everything becomes an excuse for accomplishing nothing. At some point, constant obstruction is not leadership, it’s just commentary, it’s obstruction,” Hegseth said. “President Trump does not need more people in Washington who are trying to make a point, especially from his own party. He needs people willing to help him win, to vote with him when it matters, and too often Thomas Massie has acted like his job is to stand apart from the movement that President Trump needs, instead of strengthening it.”
At a Massie speaking engagement on Saturday, May 16, Rep. Warren Davidson told Republican voters that it was perfectly fine to support both Trump and Massie, a question that has left many voters in a quandary.
“And sometimes, we disagree, and that’s fine, and I tend to disagree with the president on occasion, but when I do, I’m agreeing with Thomas on things like we can’t have runaway spending,” Davidson said.
