Tea Party–aligned Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) turned back a very heated primary challenge Tuesday night, winning with 57 percent to businessman Brian Ellis' 43 percent — and in his victory speech, he slammed Ellis for having the nerve to call him up on the phone to offer a friendly concession.
"To Brian Ellis, you owe my family and this community an apology — for your disgusting, despicable smear campaign," Amash said, as his supporters cheered him on, the local NBC affiliate reports.
You had the audacity to try to call me today, after running a campaign that was called the nastiest in the country. I ran for office to stop people like you — to stop people who were more interested in themselves than in doing what's best for their district. [Amash, via NBC]
It was indeed a nasty race, in which Ellis had the backing of business groups in a major effort by the party establishment to retake control of the GOP away from insurgents like Amash, in the wake of Amash's role in last year's government shutdown. As just one example, Ellis ran a TV ad that called Amash "Al Qaeda's best friend in Congress" for wanting to close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay and opposing the NSA surveillance programs. And Amash was certainly not about to forget it.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
After the speech, in an interview with the channel, Amash stood by his harsh words against Ellis: "He's what wrong with politics, people like him. And I stood up to these people. You know, they lie, they smear, they distort, and then they think everything's fine afterwards — and it's not fine."
Here is a video of Amash's speech, via the NBC affiliate:
-
‘Capitalism: A Global History’ by Sven Beckert and ‘American Canto’ by Olivia NuzziFeature A consummate history of capitalism and a memoir from the journalist who fell in love with RFK Jr.
-
Who will the new limits on student loans affect?The Explainer The Trump administration is imposing new limits for federal student loans starting on July 1, 2026
-
Why does Susie Wiles have MAGA-land in a panic?TODAY’S BIG QUESTION Trump’s all-powerful gatekeeper is at the center of a MAGA firestorm that could shift the trajectory of the administration
-
Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele ReinerSpeed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
-
Rob Reiner, wife dead in ‘apparent homicide’speed read The Reiners, found in their Los Angeles home, ‘had injuries consistent with being stabbed’
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
