Thomas Massie
© Jon Cherry/APRep. Thomas Massie at a recent candidate debate.
Ad spending in the race to unseat rebellious Republican Thomas Massie has smashed House records.

The glut of outside spending has caught the attention of some of the GOP's biggest Israel critics.

Two weeks out from the election, Massie traveled to Maine to appear on Carlson's podcast for a lengthy segment in which the two bashed Israel-aligned groups' efforts to influence the race. James Fishback, a longshot candidate for Florida governor who has been sharply critical of Israel's actions in Gaza and U.S. aid to its ally, endorsed Massie this week. Fishback told POLITICO that he views the deluge against Massie — who is "not some hardline Israel skeptic" — as a sign Israel supporters are "on their last legs."

The race has generated some explicitly antisemitic moments as well.


Comment: Well, we said "sort of", didn't we?


Paul Singer
Paul Singer
Hold The Line PAC, a group that says it is focused on election integrity, ran a pro-Massie ad claiming Gallrein was "bought and paid for by the LGBTQ mafia." The ad focuses on Singer, who is Jewish, and shows an unexplained rainbow Star of David in the background. The group did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why the image was included. Tim Murtaugh, an adviser to Gallrein's campaign, said "this is just sad" in a statement in response to the ad.

And the son of Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a close Massie ally, drunkenly lobbed antisemitic insults at Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), who is not Jewish, over the race while at a Capitol Hill bar this week, according to NOTUS. William Paul later apologized. Massie has not publicly addressed the ad or the Paul-Lawler incident.

Surveys show a competitive race. Gallrein pulled ahead of Massie by 8 percentage points in a Quantus Insights poll released Wednesday, after the incumbent narrowly led earlier surveys. But a Big Data Poll released Friday showed Massie up by 1 point.


Comment: Pretty amazing poll results considering this:


How about some reality Quantus:



The slim margins show Trump's imprimatur and the outside spending it unlocked have elevated the first-time federal candidate into a formidable contender.

Michael Antonopoulos, who is advising Gallrein's campaign, knocked Massie in a statement, saying the representative made the choice to poke the president in the eye every day, oppose his agenda, and take campaign cash from Obama, Biden, and Harris donors. Kentucky is fed up with Thomas Massie's act and is ready to call in the Navy SEAL."


Comment: "Kentucky is fed up." Really?




But even Massie's detractors acknowledge it will be difficult to pick off an incumbent — particularly one with entrenched support in a district that mirrors his libertarian streak.

"If he wins, the battle will continue," said Sam Markstein, the RJC's national political director. "But we do not expect that to be the case. We expect to win on Tuesday."