Lindsay Wise

WASHINGTON -- Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana says he has no regrets about his vote to convict President Trump in his impeachment trial for inciting insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, even though it ultimately cost him his job.

"When I die, if that's put in my obituary -- 'He voted to uphold the Constitution' -- that's going to be a better obituary," Cassidy told a throng of reporters outside the Senate chamber, just two days after Republican primary voters rejected him at Trump's behest.

The comments came in the two-term senator's first appearance on Capitol Hill since his loss. The top two vote getters in Louisiana's Senate primary Saturday were Rep. Julia Letlow, who had been endorsed by Trump, and state Treasurer John Fleming, who also served in the first Trump administration. Letlow and Fleming will advance to a June 27 runoff.

The vote "may have cost me my seat, but who cares?" Cassidy said. "Wouldn't all of us want to say, 'I voted to support the Constitution, on something momentous'? That's what I feel about it. I'm very pleased about it."

Trump cheered Cassidy's loss. "His disloyalty to the man who got him elected is now a part of legend, and it's nice to see that his political career is OVER!" he posted on Truth Social over the weekend.

Cassidy was one of seven Republican senators to join with Democrats to vote to convict Trump in the 2021 trial, short of the two-thirds supermajority required. Among those GOP senators, only Cassidy, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska are still in office. At the time, Cassidy said he voted to convict Trump "because he is guilty."

In a sign that Cassidy isn't planning to pull punches on his way out, on Monday he also criticized the Trump administration's creation of an unusual $1.8 billion settlement fund to compensate people who claim that the federal government weaponized the legal system against them, a move that could direct taxpayer dollars to Trump's allies with minimal oversight.

"We are a nation of laws. You can't just make up things whole piece," Cassidy said when asked about the fund. "People are concerned about making their own ends meet, not about putting the slush fund together without a legal precedent."

A reporter asked Monday if Cassidy regretted his vote last year to confirm Robert F. Kennedy as HHS secretary, given that Trump still urged voters to oust him. Cassidy, a medical doctor, cast what was seen as the deciding vote in favor of Kennedy's confirmation after Kennedy made a series of promises concerning vaccines.

"You imply that I made that vote for political payoff, and I reject that, " Cassidy said, bristling a little. "And I've consistently said that's not true." He added that he can't live his life looking back. "The fact is that you live life forward."

But Cassidy, who chairs the Senate's Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, did suggest that his final months in office would include holding Kennedy and other members of the executive branch accountable. Cassidy also criticized presidents' reliance on executive orders to govern, rather than passing laws in Congress. Trump has issued more than 250 executive orders since returning to office, more than he signed during his entire first term.

Cassidy acknowledged to reporters that Louisiana voters wanted someone else and he has no realistic chance of a political comeback. To fellow Republican lawmakers, Cassidy offered advice: Vote your convictions.

"You're looking at a man who loves this country, who feels very, very good about how I serve my country and my Constitution, and my fellow Americans," he said. "I feel great."

Write to Lindsay Wise at lindsay.wise@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 18, 2026 21:38 ET (01:38 GMT)

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