A Republican senator was forced to defend himself Monday after MAGA supporters accused him of “treason” for carrying out a routine Senate duty.
Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC) presided over a pro forma session of the Senate early in the day, prompting attacks from some in the MAGA world who accused Budd and other GOP senators of blocking President Donald Trump from making recess appointments.
“The idea that any Republican Senator does so to block @POTUS’s nominees or is committing ‘treason’ by doing so is as ridiculous as it is false,” Budd fired back in a lengthy thread on X.
The unusual defense quickly caught the attention of Capitol Hill watchers.
“Where we’re at: US senator has to make a post clarifying that presiding over a pro forma is not treason,” NOTUS congressional reporter Igor Bobic wrote on social media.
Veteran congressional reporter Jamie Dupree noted that the backlash is why some Republicans are hesitant to preside over the sessions.
“This is why some GOP Senators don't want these duties, because they get attacked on social media (wrongly) for blocking President Trump's nominees (the GOP isn't blocking anything),” Dupree posted Monday.
George Callas, founder of Callas Strategy Group and a former senior congressional staffer, was more blunt.
“Something is very broken in our system when a US senator has to post a 7-part thread explaining why his time in the chair on the Senate floor is not ‘treason,’” he told his followers on X.
Semafor’s Burgess Everett also noted that geography likely played a role in Budd taking on the duty Monday.
“Pro forma sessions are usually done by whoever is nearby or is willing to do a solid for the majority party,” Everett wrote, adding: “No one wants to do them, they are a pain the butt.”
Today, I presided over a “pro forma” session of the Senate. The idea that any Republican Senator does so to block @POTUS’s nominees or is committing “treason” by doing so is as ridiculous as it is false.
Here are the facts: ⬇️🧵
— Senator Ted Budd (@SenTedBuddNC) August 31, 2026