Opinion: A ‘MAGA civil war’ after Trump endorsed conservative Rep. Bob Good’s challenger

Editor’s Note: Douglas Heye, who served as the deputy chief of staff to former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, is a GOP strategist. “I didn’t come to Washington to be part of a team.” Those were words spoken in 2011 by then-newly sworn-in Republican Rep. Raul Labrador of Idaho, as documented by journalist Robert Draper in his book, “Do Not Ask What Good We Do” — and they tell us a lot about the recent fractious history of House Republicans. During what we called “DMM”, House Republican Conference chair Jeb Hensarling, acutely aware of the calendar but failing to take into account political reality, said, “I can’t vote ‘yes’ now. Thus, we had what became widely known as “the Meadows Letter,” sent to Republican leadership by a new member of Congress, Rep. Mark Meadows, urging them to defund Obamacare through any appropriations bill, including what’s known as a continuing resolution — a temporary measure keeping the government operational. This primary is being called a “MAGA civil war,” one that could have a seismic impact on both the Freedom Caucus and the House GOP.