Bill Cassidy Has Regrets

By Noah Rothman

Tuesday, January 20, 2026

 

“It’s no secret,” Louisiana Republican Party Chairman Derek Babcock told NBC News back in February of last year. “It’s going to be a tough primary for him.”

 

Babcock ought to know. He was one of many Pelican State Republicans publicly critical of Senator Bill Cassidy following his vote against Donald Trump during the impeachment proceedings that followed the events of January 6, 2021. Indeed, the Louisiana Republican Party voted to censure Cassidy for that betrayal.

 

But it was Cassidy’s surprise vote to send Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to a full floor vote despite his many reservations about the prominent conspiracy theorist’s qualifications that prompted Babcock’s observation. And in his estimation, Cassidy did nothing to repair his image among “pro-Trump voters.” Indeed, it seems Cassidy’s acquiescence failed even to satisfy Trump himself.

 

“Should she decide to enter this Race, Julia Letlow has my Complete and Total Endorsement,” the president wrote over the weekend. “RUN, JULIA, RUN!!!” With that, Congresswoman Letlow, who had not yet announced her intention to challenge Cassidy, launched her bid for Senate.

 

Cassidy is not yet backing down from his re-election campaign. He has the support of his more prominent colleagues in the Senate GOP conference, and his $11 million war chest is formidable. But Trump’s endorsement in a red state has proven an insurmountable obstacle for those who are denied it.

 

If Cassidy’s electoral fate was sealed in 2021, his decision to silence his conscience over Kennedy’s nomination looks even more craven in retrospect. He faced a choice between defeat and dishonor. He chose dishonor, and he shall now have defeat.