A retiring GOP congressman broke with President Donald Trump over the fight for his seat and sounded an alarm for his party.
Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV) told Politico in an interview Saturday that he would "absolutely not" cast his vote for businessman David Flippo, the Trump-endorsed Republican running to succeed him in Nevada's 2nd District. Amodei warned the seat, which Trump carried by 14 points and which has never sent a Democrat to Congress, is now "at risk."
Amodei pointed to a pile of allegations against Flippo, including accusations of stolen valor over claims about his military record and his delays in filing required financial disclosures. Flippo has blamed staff and others for what he called mistakes in describing his service on campaign materials.
Amodei didn't spare the White House either. "You say, well, the president endorsed him," he said. "It's like, well, whoever was advising the president on, 'Hey, this would be a good place for you to go ahead and weigh in,' gave him awful advice. The vetting process, quote unquote, must have been nearly non-existent."
The congressman, who has held the Northern Nevada seat for 15 years, also accused Flippo of swooping into the district from Las Vegas within hours of Amodei's retirement announcement. "It's the cynical attitude towards the process to me that has just been staggering in terms of the end justifies the means," Amodei said. He added that he plans to vote early and is seriously considering backing the independent candidate in the race.
Democrats are fielding former Nevada Assembly Majority Leader Teresa Benitez-Thompson, who has made the contest closer than Republicans would like. The limited polling available shows Flippo either ahead or trailing by several points, and the pro-Trump super PAC MAGA Inc. only recently began spending to prop him up. GOP officials have also discussed whether Trump should campaign in the area, according to Politico.
Amodei said Republicans still have a path to keeping the House, but he warned the political climate has soured badly since a year ago, when the party felt the "winds were at our back."
"It's gone," he said, adding that "the mood of the country right now does not feel warm."
"There's absolutely no, 'Yeah, I'd rather be us than them,'" Amodei said. "It's like everybody better button up their chin strap and be ready to play through the fourth quarter."