Pressure on a veteran and senator shows what’s next for those who oppose Trump

She’s an Iraq war combat veteran and sexual assault survivor who has sought for years to improve how the military handles claims of sexual misconduct. But when Sen. Joni Ernst appeared initially cool to President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Pete Hegseth for Defense secretary — a man who once said women should not serve in combat and who has himself been accused of sexual assault — she faced an onslaught of criticism from within her own party, including threats of a potential primary challenge in 2026. “The American people spoke,” said Bob Vander Plaats, president and chief executive of the organization the Family Leader and a conservative activist in Ernst’s home state. “When you sign up for this job, it’s a big boy and big girl job, and she’s feeling the pressure of people vocalizing their disappointment, their concern with how she’s handling this.” The pressure campaign against Ernst, once a rising member of the GOP leadership, shows there is little room in Trump’s party for those who can’t get to yes on Hegseth or any of his other picks for his incoming administration. Those piling on included Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who warned that Ernst’s political career was “in serious jeopardy” and that primary challengers stood at the ready.