North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis is retiring, blaming a lack of "independent thinking" in a not-so-subtle jab at President Trump's stranglehold on the GOP.
While citing generic complaints about the political climate, Tillis avoided mentioning the elephant in the room as President Trump builds pressure for Tillis to be replaced by a more reliable Republican.
Tillis announced his retirement shortly after coming out against President Trump's "Big, Beautiful Bill," with Tillis claiming the bill results in Medicaid cuts that he cannot support.
A senator since 2015, Tillis has never been a reliable supporter of President Trump. Shortly after announcing his retirement, Tillis abandoned all restraint as he compared Trump to Barack Obama in a long speech on the Senate floor.
The senator called Trump's sprawling legislation, which delivers on key Trump agenda items like tax relief and immigration enforcement, a "betrayal" of Trump's promise not to touch Medicaid. Tillis even invoked Obama's infamous broken pledge that people could keep their insurance plans under his health care reform.
"I'm telling the president, you have been misinformed," Tillis said. "What do I tell 663,000 people in two years, three years, when President Trump breaks his promise by pushing them off of Medicaid because the funding's not there anymore."
Republicans have insisted that Trump is not cutting Medicaid benefits, but rather waste and abuse from those who are gaming the system.
For weeks, Trump has ripped the handful of Republicans who have criticized his bill as grandstanders with nothing constructive to offer. Trump threatened to back a primary against Tillis over the weekend.
“Numerous people have come forward wanting to run in the Primary against ‘Senator Thom’ Tillis,” Trump wrote in a post. “I will be meeting with them over the coming weeks, looking for someone who will properly represent the Great People of North Carolina and, so importantly, the United States of America.”
Despite the vocal opposition from a minority of Republicans, Trump's bill cleared a procedural vote in the Senate on Saturday, with Tillis and Rand Paul (Ky.) being the only Republican to vote no. Trump has been pressuring Congress to get the bill on his desk by July 4th.
Tillis obviously does not want to be remembered as a team player. In a statement announcing his plans not to run for re-election, Tillis touted his "bipartisan" streak.
"In Washington over the last few years, it’s been increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species,” Tillis said.
Nobody denies that American politics has become extremely tribal, but that's no excuse to bury our heads in the sand.
While Tillis seems to think he's some kind of hero for compromising with Democrats, the reality is that he can't handle this high-stakes moment we're in - but maybe North Carolina will elect a Republican who can.
