GOP congressman gets silenced by his own party member mid-speech while he was defending his wife from Trump’s attacks

Representative Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, had his microphone taken away by a fellow Republican during a speech. State House Speaker David Osborne grabbed the mic from Massie while he was speaking at the Oldham County Republican Party’s Lincoln Day Dinner.

According to the Courier-Journal, Massie told the audience, “If you are a congressman, you work not for the Speaker of the House, I work for you!” He was pointing at the crowd when Osborne took his microphone. Someone in the crowd yelled, “Welcome to the snake pit, baby!”

Massie said he wanted extra time on stage to defend his wife, Carolyn Grace Moffa. President Trump recently posted an insulting message about Massie’s wife on social media. Massie’s primary opponent, Ed Gallrein, then reposted Trump’s message. Massie said everyone at the event had seen the president’s post.

The long-running disagreement between Massie and Trump continues to create tension

President Trump has attacked Massie many times for acting independently. Earlier that day, Trump called Massie a “moron” at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. The president said, “There’s something wrong with him.”

Massie has challenged party leaders on several issues. He called for the full release of the Epstein files. He also spoke out against U.S. involvement in Iran and criticized Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” that passed last summer. The congressman has been facing Trump’s public attacks recently.

The official reason for taking the microphone was about time limits, not politics. Oldham County Republican Party Chair Blaine Anderson said Massie and Gallrein were told they had five minutes to speak. Anderson said the incident was just about following the schedule.

Anderson explained that Osborne gave Massie an extra minute before taking the mic away. Gallrein also got an extra minute but finished on time, so his microphone was not taken. Anderson wrote in a text message, “This had nothing to do with what was being said by the Congressman. It was about speaking time expiring.”

Massie called Anderson a “great guy” but thinks the official story is incomplete. The congressman said, “There’s some Massie Derangement Syndrome in Oldham County among the establishment.” He believes if the speaker had agreed with his speech, he would not have been cut off so quickly. Massie had previously shared Trump’s attack on his wife and how it affected him.

After leaving the stage, Massie met his supporters for drinks at Ernesto’s Mexican Cuisine in La Grange. Other Republicans defended Osborne, saying he was just keeping the event on schedule. Strategist Jake Cox said Osborne approached other candidates when they went over time, but they finished before action was needed. Cox said there was “absolutely zero indication that [Osborne] did what he did out of a political disagreement.”