‘You're like Arnie’: Republican recounts surreal Trump call after wife's death

In a Tuesday appearance on Theo Von’s "This Past Weekend" podcast, U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) recounted a bizarre phone call with President Donald Trump last year in which the then-presidential candidate gave his condolences for the passing of Massie’s wife.

“That’s a hard one, that’s a very hard one,” Trump told Massie over the phone regarding the passing of his wife, Massie said, putting on his best Trump impression.

“You know, Arnold Palmer, he played around a lot, but he did love his wife, and when she passed away, it almost killed Arnie. It was tough on Arnie, but he's a tough cookie. You're a tough cookie too. You're like Arnie, you'll get through this – I take it back, you're much tougher than Arnie ever was.”

Trump’s only other mention of Palmer came last year when, during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, he praised the late professional golfer’s genitalia.

Massie has had a tumultuous relationship with Trump over the years, having initially supported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the 2024 presidential election. While he would go on to back Trump in the general election, a new feud between the two has erupted over Massie’s opposition to the so-called "Big Beautiful Bill," with Trump calling the Kentucky lawmaker a “grandstander.”

“I've been on his good side, I've been on his bad side, it seems like every couple years it flips,” Massie told Von.

Shortly after Massie’s wife died in June 2024, he said Trump left him a “very nice (voice mail) message.” It wouldn’t be until two weeks before the 2024 general election, however, that Massie would call the number back, expecting a member of Trump’s staff to pick up, but to his surprise, it was Trump.

“He's like two weeks from prison or president, nobody knows, and he's taking my call,” Massie said. “I was taken off guard because I'm sitting here in my boxers in a Marriott.”