Former New York Mayor and current Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani is causing more trouble for the White House and the Republican party, and party leaders are fuming according to Politico.

From Politico:

“In a move that blindsided the West Wing and sent Hill Republicans into a tizzy, the president’s personal attorney is throwing his support behind an obscure House candidate in Louisiana trying to take out incumbent GOP Rep. Clay Higgins. But the bizarre tale of Giuliani’s interest in an off-the-radar congressional race only begins there.

It turns out the ex-New York mayor’s new girlfriend, GOP fundraiser Jennifer LeBlanc, is working for the Republican challenger in the race, Josh Guillory. LeBlanc had been on Higgins’ payroll until late last year when she abruptly parted ways with the congressman.

Giuliani’s incursion into the race has infuriated senior party officials, who are convinced Giuliani is acting at his paramour’s behest.

“We have a National Enquirer-type situation going on down in Louisiana’s 3rd Congressional District,” said state Attorney General Jeff Landry, a Higgins backer who hails from the area. Giuliani’s involvement, Landry added, is “ridiculous.”

At a time when the president is aggressively working to sway GOP primaries in conservative areas where he’s popular, Republican leaders worry that Giuliani will give Guillory the imprimatur of Trump’s blessing, even though the president hasn’t endorsed in the race.

“I just think this is not the proper place for him to come down and challenge an existing congressman,” said Charlie Buckels, a longtime Republican activist in Louisiana and member of the state party finance committee. “It seems quite odd to me, and I’m just disappointed.”

As note by Politico, “party leaders typically do everything in their power to reelect incumbents, not prop up long-shot primary challengers. Higgins has received financial support from a range of House Republicans, including House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), who has taken the freshman congressman under his wing. Scalise has sent out fundraising emails on Higgins behalf.”

Giuliani is set to travel to southwestern Louisiana on Monday to headline a fundraiser for Guillory. The trip will come two weeks after a Trump-endorsed Republican candidate, Katie Arrington, unseated South Carolina Rep. Mark Sanford in a primary.

Higgins has privately told allies that he was caught by surprise by the former mayor. The congressman has closely aligned himself with the president during the campaign, delivering a series of floor speeches praising Trump’s actions.

“I’m unfazed,” Higgins said in a statement. “My focus is on serving and continuing to deliver wins for Louisiana and America. I stand with President Trump and will continue to help him advance the conservative agenda in Congress.”

Higgins added: “I’m not concerned with who Rudy Giuliani is dating.”

Giuliani, who recently divorced his wife of 15 years, Judith Nathan, went public with his relationship with Leblanc last week. “We are dating, however not that advanced yet,” he told the New York Daily News.

Neither Giuliani nor Leblanc would comment. The White House also did not respond to requests for comment. ShareTweet