**BREAKING: Sen. Jon Ossoff says many Republicans privately believe President Donald Trump is politically damaging his own party, claiming that behind closed doors GOP lawmakers admit the president “has lost it” as he prepares to revive long-debunked allegations of voter fraud in Georgia. The remarks underscore the deep political divide over Trump’s continued focus on the 2020 election as the country heads toward another high-stakes election cycle.
Speaking with reporters, Ossoff was asked what message he would have for Republican senators who might support Trump’s reported plans to deliver a primetime address alleging that his administration has uncovered evidence of widespread voter fraud in Georgia during the 2020 presidential election.
The Georgia Democrat responded without hesitation.
“I don’t know of Republican colleagues that agree with this. Privately, most elected Republicans in this building think the president has lost it and is dooming them to dismal losses this fall,”* Ossoff said.
Trump is expected to deliver a nationally televised address Thursday centered on claims that the 2020 election in Georgia was tainted by fraud. Those allegations have been repeatedly rejected by state and federal courts, multiple investigations, Republican-led election reviews, and Georgia election officials, including Republican Gov. Brian Kemp and former Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who have consistently maintained that the state’s election results were accurate.
Ossoff argued that Republicans have already witnessed the political consequences of revisiting those claims, pointing to Georgia’s 2021 Senate runoff elections, in which Democrats captured both Senate seats after Trump’s continued focus on election fraud became a dominant issue.
The senator also took aim at his Republican challenger, Rep. Mike Collins, after a reporter noted that Collins has publicly backed Trump’s latest election claims.
*”Let’s see how Mike Collins handles this now,”* Ossoff said.
He argued that Collins launched his Senate campaign by embracing allegations that the 2020 election was stolen and said the Republican candidate will now have to defend both his policy positions and continued support for Trump’s election-related claims before Georgia voters.
Ossoff broadened his criticism beyond election issues, accusing Trump of using the renewed focus on 2020 as a political strategy while the administration faces criticism over economic issues and other policy challenges. He argued that revisiting past election disputes diverts attention from current concerns facing voters and reflects broader efforts to shape the political narrative ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
The comments highlight the increasingly sharp political battle taking shape in Georgia, one of the nation’s most closely watched battleground states. With control of Congress once again at stake, both parties are expected to make Georgia a central front in the national campaign, where issues ranging from election administration and voting rights to the economy and presidential leadership are likely to dominate the debate.
Ossoff concluded by encouraging supporters to remain engaged in voter participation and election protection efforts, saying Georgia voters have repeatedly demonstrated their willingness to make independent decisions at the ballot box despite continuing political battles over the state’s 2020 election results.
