'Terrible week for Trump': GOP strategist warns MAGA lawmaker to distance himself now

A Republican strategist says that Trump is hurting politically right now and warned a GOP lawmaker who appeared with the president.

"This is a really terrible week for this Trump administration," Rina Shah said during an appearance on CNN. She added that Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) "should not have trumped" the president at a campaign event on Friday.

"Lawler has been confusing in the past many months," Shah explained. "By continuing to seem like he wants to be close to the White House," despite "his colleagues in the Senate...they're reading the room."

She brought up the fiery meeting between GOP senators and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, where they "really stood up" and chewed into him regarding the "anti-weaponization" fund, Shah said.

The midterm elections are six months away, and "it's time to get tough about what matters." The senators who ripped into Blanche "aren't in full revolt. They're just in midterm savior mode," Shah added.

"So Lawler, if he knew better, he would be doing that too," she explained. "He's employing a throw-it-all-at-the-wall strategy. He thinks that maybe Trump's charisma might win out with some folks, but again, the pocketbook issues."

She tried to send the message to Lawler that "your constituents hate endless war," but Trump is "making it all about himself."