The author, a veteran investigative reporter in Washington, is editor-in-chief of SpyTalk, an online publication that reports on intelligence, foreign policy and military operations. Stein first got to know Mike Rogers 20 years ago when he was an editor at Congressional Quarterly and Rogers served on the House Homeland Security Committee.
Rogers is a Republican candidate running for the U.S. Senate in Michigan. This story first appeared in SpyTalk. An excerpt is being republisihed with permission.
By Jeff Stein
SpyTalk
Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers (campaign photo)
Mike Rogers was taking a piss in the men’s room of an automobile factory in his Michigan district back in 2001 when he looked up and literally saw the writing on the wall.
“There, above the urinal, was my picture, and the caption was something like, ‘Mike Rogers wants workplace deaths to go up,’” he recalled years later.
“After seeing that, I thought, ‘Wow, this is a whole new game,’” he wrote in a Politico piece in January 2015, explaining his decision to leave Congress. The bathroom art was “a completely inaccurate” caricature of his vote to repeal “some very onerous regulations on business crammed through at the last minute of the Clinton administration,” he maintained.
Fourteen years later, “a life in politics,” particularly Congress, had become unbearable, he wrote. It was “like being in the middle of the worst divorce you’ve ever seen, every day,” he went on. “The level of pettiness and small-minded meanness in political discourse is disheartening at best. It works against our national interests at its worst.”
And that was before Trump. Rogers—who’d left the FBI after six years to run for state office before winning a seat in Congress—had gained a reputation for thoughtful bipartisanship, so much so that he’d been chosen to chair the House Intelligence Committee, a place so fractious when he arrived that top CIA officials were calling it “the island of misfit toys.” Over his four years as chairman from 2011 to 2015, he became a model for bipartisanship—a soon to be extinct homo politico, a RINO—Republican in Name Only—an epithet in the emerging Tea Party—MAGA world. It’s only gotten worse since then, of course, under Trumpism’s encroaching shadow, as anyone paying even passing attention knows all too well.
And yet now he wants back in, albeit on the other side of the Capitol, in the allegedly more genteel U.S. Senate. He’s running for the open seat against Democrat Rep. Elissa Slotkin, a former CIA analyst with multiple Iraq tours, later a senior Pentagon official. It’s been dubbed “the national security race.” And to win it, he’s had to throw in his lot with Donald Trump—thus bargaining away a bit of his soul.
Land O Lakes
In the heart of Michigan, where the auto industry once thrived and the Great Lakes sparkled, a political transformation was quietly unfolding when Rogers made his Senate bid. For years, his centrist policies appealed to a broad swath of voters, allowing him to build a strong following across party lines. But as the political climate grew increasingly polarized, something shifted.
In the early days of his Senate campaign, Rogers embraced his moderate roots. He spoke passionately about infrastructure investment, healthcare reform, and the need for bipartisan cooperation. His speeches echoed with the familiar rhetoric of compromise, appealing to traditional Republicans and disillusioned Democrats alike. However, as he traveled across the state, he began to notice a marked change in the political atmosphere.
At town halls and local gatherings, the enthusiasm for Trump-style rhetoric surged. Voters expressed frustration with the establishment, craving a leader who echoed their grievances and fears. Rogers felt the pressure. In conversations with key party donors and influential figures, he began to hear the same refrain: "If you want to win, you need to embrace Trump’s vision."
Ex-President Donald Trump
As the primary approached, Rogers wrestled with his identity. He watched as challengers who adopted a hardline stance gained traction, rallying grassroots support and energizing the base. The once-diverse Michigan Republican Party seemed to be converging around a singular message of loyalty to Trump and a rejection of moderates. It was then that he faced a pivotal decision: stay true to his principles or pivot to align with the new wave of Trump Republicans.
In a defining moment, Rogers attended a rally where Trump himself was speaking. The fervor of the crowd was palpable. As he watched supporters chant and wave signs, he realized the stakes. The Republican Party was not just changing; it was evolving into something more aggressive and unapologetic. In that moment, he felt a shift within himself. Perhaps aligning with Trump could be the path to both victory and relevance in this new landscape.
With each passing week, Rogers began to adopt the language and policies of the Trump era. He emphasized immigration reform, alluded to the menace of the “deep state,” and vowed to champion conservative values with renewed fervor. His campaign rhetoric became sharper, aimed at energizing the base that had once seemed so distant from his moderate approach. He found himself aligning with Trump’s views on trade, law enforcement, and the economy, positioning himself as a fighter for Michigan’s working class.
As he embraced this new persona, he faced backlash from former supporters who felt betrayed. But Rogers was undeterred. He focused on the voters who craved a bold, uncompromising stance. His campaign transformed into a rallying cry for those who felt left behind by a rapidly changing world.
The primary came, and Rogers emerged victorious, fueled by the fervent support of a transformed electorate. He now stood at the intersection of ambition and identity, having shed his moderate skin in favor of a more aggressive, Trump-aligned approach. Yet, even as he celebrated his win, a part of him must have wondered if he had lost something essential in the process.
As he looked out over the Michigan landscape, he understood that the path he had chosen was fraught with challenges, but it was also filled with possibility. The political arena had shifted, and so had he—caught in the tides of a party that was redefining what it meant to be a Republican. Once a staunch defender of U.S. intelligence, he was now a spear carrier, however reluctant, in the Trump-MAGA world’s war on it.
Rogers’ campaign spokesman did not respond to an interview request.
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