Emmer aims to strengthen ties with Trump post-speaker incident

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) is attempting to repair his relationship with Donald Trump after the former president opposed his run for speaker last fall.

Emmer, the third Republican nominated to replace Kevin McCarthy in October 2023, hoped Trump would stay neutral after the candidacy of his first choice, firebrand Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), stalled out on the House floor.

But a series of perceived slights, plus Emmer’s reputation as one of the more centrist Republicans in House leadership, prompted Trump to rail against him. Emmer dropped out within hours, clearing the way for Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) ascension to the speakership after three weeks of turmoil.

Emmer, the No. 3 Republican in the House, has taken a number of steps to build a closer relationship since then. He attended a Pennsylvania roundtable and reception for Trump on April 13, and later this month, he will co-host a Minnesota GOP dinner headlined by the former president.

Perhaps most importantly, Emmer endorsed Trump’s presidential run in January, days before the Iowa caucuses.

Emmer’s perceived reluctance to do so in October — he side-stepped a question from CNN at the time — was considered a black mark by Trump, as was his decision to certify the results of the 2020 election after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

Trump called Emmer a “RINO,” or Republican in name only, and warned his House colleagues that electing him speaker would be a “tragic mistake.”

Emmer has attempted to forge a detente with his shows of support. The two communicate on a weekly basis, according to a source familiar with the matter, and Emmer became the Minnesota chairman of Trump’s 2024 campaign in March.

His appointment came after the former president attended a Mar-a-Lago fundraiser hosted by Emmer.

“Whip Emmer is honored to fight alongside President Trump as Republicans work to hold the House, flip the Senate, and fire Joe Biden in November,” a spokesperson for the congressman told the Washington Examiner when asked about the apparent thawing of tensions.

Emmer has followed in the footsteps of other House Republicans as Trump locked down the Republican nomination for president. Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), the House majority leader, endorsed him one day before Emmer, while even those who showed hostility toward Trump in the primary, such as the conservative Club for Growth, have since mended fences.

But Emmer’s displays of loyalty have inevitably raised speculation about his desire to lead the House Republican Conference in the future. Emmer was hobbled in the speaker’s race by some of his past votes, including his support for gay marriage. He has since flirted with a shift to the right.

In a debate over the government’s spy powers last month, he was the only senior member of House GOP leadership to back conservatives’ push for warrants on U.S. data caught up in foreign surveillance.

Emmer is already viewed favorably by most of his colleagues, thanks to his whip operation and two times leading the main fundraising arm for House Republicans. He is among the top fundraising lawmakers, raising $17 million since the start of the new Congress.

But patching up his relationship with the former president could solidify the support he would need from the MAGA Right, if he is able to overcome past hostility.

Some in Trump’s orbit continue to view Emmer with suspicion.

“If I was President Trump, I would stay far away from Tom Emmer. He’s a snake, and he has never been loyal,” said one operative who called Emmer’s overtures “lip service” to the former president.

A second operative close to the Trump family claimed the former president still views Emmer unfavorably.

“I think as long as Trump has anything to say about it, Emmer will not be speaker,” the second operative said.

A third operative declined to speculate on what Emmer’s outreach means for his future in the House but praised his contributions in Minnesota, a state the Trump campaign believes is in play for November.

No Republican nominee for president has won Minnesota since Richard Nixon’s landslide victory in 1972.

“He remembers who helps him and who fights for him,” the third operative said of Trump. “If Tom Emmer helps deliver that, I think it will be remembered.”

Emmer’s speakership run is not the only cautionary tale for Republicans finding themselves on the wrong side of Trump. The former president stayed relatively quiet as eight House rebels deposed McCarthy, apparently due to his decision not to endorse in the presidential race sooner.

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Johnson has sought to avoid that fate. He endorsed Trump within weeks of becoming speaker and has cleaved closely to him as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) prepares to initiate her own attempt to oust him.

Trump and his surrogates have repeatedly urged Greene not to move forward, fearing the display of disunity could hurt Republicans ahead of the November election.