Trump just blasted this Texas congressman. But he made one big mistake | Opinion

Donald Trump is at it again, and this time he’s blasting one of Texas’ most formidable Republican congressmen, Austin Rep. Chip Roy. Trump not only got a bunch of facts wrong, he also highlighted the many reasons conservatives are lucky to have Roy in Congress and why Americans shouldn’t support Trump for president.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said: “Has any smart and energetic Republican in the Great State of Texas decided to run in the Primary against RINO Congressman Chip Roy. For the right person, he is very beatable. If interested, let me know!”

There’s just one problem: The deadline to run in the primaries was several days ago now. Roy drew no opponent in the March GOP primary, and he’s expected to cruise to another term representing the 21st Congressional District.

It’s likely Trump’s post was in response to Roy’s appearance on Fox News Monday night with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Roy offered his support of DeSantis way back in March, before DeSantis was even officially running. In a tweet Tuesday morning, Roy called DeSantis “a proven winner who will stand athwart tyranny, not give it a medal.”

Roy and DeSantis are like-minded in several areas, including border security, expanding freedom for constituents and keeping state and federal budgets in check as much as possible.

Trump’s comments smearing Roy are a double-edged sword: so absurd it’s almost funny, yet unnecessarily provoked and nasty, providing yet another warning to voters about how Trump reacts to getting his feelings hurt. We’ve always known Trump had thin skin, but seeing him react in real-time to a bruised ego is informative and demonstrates an undesirable quality in a president.

Trump also maligns Roy as a RINO, or Republican In Name Only. Roy is a lot of things — passionate, interesting, a zealot, even — but a RINO he is not. In fact, sometimes, Roy seems to be one of the few Texans in the U.S. House who is trying to reduce federal spending and protect our border.

Last week, Roy refused to vote for the 3,000-plus page, $886 billion defense spending plan that Congress passed, which will boost pay for troops and give aid to Ukraine. Roy is so conservative that according to Roll Call, he earned a perfect zero when it came to supporting President Joe Biden.

Some might say a lack of bipartisanship demonstrates a weakness, others might say it’s a sign of being a strong purist. What it’s not is a sign that Roy is just a Republican In Name Only.

This isn’t just an attack on Roy, it’s insight into how and why Trump is not fit to lead America again.

Why would conservatives — even MAGA conservatives — support someone who takes potshots at someone like Chip Roy? If even a firebrand conservative can’t satisfy Trump, who could? This is yet another reason conservatives shouldn’t back Trump again. Like a classic narcissist, he has thin skin yet a robust ego and he takes things personally, yet nothing is his fault.

These aren’t qualities we’re looking for in a leader, but flaws most people try to hide. The American people can do better — and conservatives have better options than Trump.

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