Watch Tea Party Rep. Justin Amash slam his establishment GOP opponent — for calling to concede

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:
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Can Trump put his tariffs on stronger legal footing?
Today's Big Question Appeals court says 'emergency' tariffs are improper
-
Film reviews: The Roses, Splitsville, and Twinless
Feature A happy union devolves into domestic warfare, a couple's open marriage reaps chaos, and an unlikely friendship takes surprising turns
-
Thought-provoking podcasts you may have missed this summer
The Week Recommends Check out a true crime binger, a deep-dive into history and more
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclub
Speed 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 ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed 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 view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play