Fox News host Shep Smith grilled Republican strategist Doug Heye on Wednesday, arguing that Republicans created the conditions leading up to Donald Trump becoming the front-runner for the party's presidential nomination.
Trump's supporters, Smith said, are part of a second conservative party -- people "who believe that they've been lied to by the establishment for cycle after cycle, [saying] 'We're gonna repeal and replace Obamacare.' Every single person who knows one thing knew that you weren't gonna repeal and replace Obamacare. Everybody knew it, even the people who were saying it."
Despite that, he added, establishment GOP lawmakers kept saying they would gut the Affordable Care Act while not being able to do it.
"They don't trust you anymore. Do you blame them?" Smith said of conservative voters. "Were they children and you the parent? Wouldn't the child run away at 16?"
"I think people have a great reason to be angry at both sides of Washington," Heye responded. "But the House and Senate have voted to replace Obamacare. Obviously, we need a Republican president who's going to actually sign that repeal."
Heye also said he was "hopeful" that efforts would increase to "expose" Trump's record as the Republican primaries continue.
"So you'll be running against both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump," Smith said.
"I'll be voting for a constitutional conservative on election day," Heye replied.
"But what you just described is a dual campaign -- a two-front war. One war on Benghazi and emails against Hillary Clinton; another war against Donald Trump over what he said about black people and women and his university. Those two-front wars are hard to fight. We learned that recently."
Watch the interview, as aired on Wednesday, below.
