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Senator Thom Tillis announces he is not running for reelection
Senator Thom Tillis announces he is not running for reelection

Yahoo

time29-06-2025

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

Senator Thom Tillis announces he is not running for reelection

North Carolina U.S. Senator Thom Tillis has announced that he will not be running for re-election. The Republican representative said that over the last year, he has joked about not looking forward to running for another term. And now he wants to spend more time with his wife, children, and grandchildren. 'It's not a hard choice, and I will not be seeking re-election,' he said in a statement. Tillis said he has been grateful for his time as a representative for North Carolina. And for the path that got him there. 'It has been a blessing to go on a journey from living in a trailer park and making minimum wage as a young man to having the honor of serving as U.S. Senator for North Carolina,' he said in a statement. READ: Senator Tillis voices concerns about Big Beautiful Bill in its current form, says he can't support He is proud of his accomplishments, he said, emphasizing work in bipartisan victories, including passing eugenics compensation, investing in mental health, and passing the Respect for Marriage Act. 'Sometimes those bipartisan initiatives got me into trouble with my own party, but I wouldn't have changed a single one,' he said. 'In Washington over the last few years, it's become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species.' But Tillis said he has noticed a shift in politics where independent thinking is criticized when it opposes a person's party. He said he has seen this on both sides of the aisle. 'Too many elected officials are motivated by pure raw politics who really don't give a damn about the people they promised to represent on the campaign trail,' he said. 'After they get elected, they don't bother to do the hard work to research the policies they seek to implement and understand the consequences those policies could have on that young adult living in a trailer park, struggling to make ends meet.' This announcement comes just a day after he spoke out against the Big Beautiful Bill in its current form. On Saturday, Tillis said he had concerns about the way the bill would affect Medicaid, specifically how cuts would impact rural communities and hospitals in North Carolina. He said he looks forward to continuing to represent the state of North Carolina for the next 18 months, unhindered by campaigning distractions. 'I look forward to having the pure freedom to call the balls and strikes as I see fit and representing the great people of North Carolina to the best of my ability,' he said. WATCH: Supreme Court limits nationwide injunctions, but fate of Trump birthright citizenship order unclear

Trump hits out at Republican senator for refusing to back ‘big, beautiful bill'
Trump hits out at Republican senator for refusing to back ‘big, beautiful bill'

The Guardian

time29-06-2025

  • Politics
  • The Guardian

Trump hits out at Republican senator for refusing to back ‘big, beautiful bill'

Donald Trump has hit out at Senator Thom Tillis over the North Carolina Republican's refusal to back his 'big, beautiful bill', even as the president's signature piece of domestic legislative action narrowly passed a procedural vote in the Senate late Saturday. In a post on Truth Social, Trump threatened Tillis, who is up for re-election in 2026 in the battleground state, by saying he would meet with potential candidates to challenge him in a Republican primary. 'Numerous people have come forward wanting to run' against Tillis, Trump wrote Saturday night. '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.' Tillis was one of two Senate Republicans, along with Rand Paul of Kentucky, to vote against the bill championed by their party's leader. Trump accused Tillis of grandstanding 'in order to get some publicity for himself, for a possible, but very difficult re-election'. He also wrote that Tillis is making a 'BIG MISTAKE for America, and the Wonderful People of North Carolina!' The threat came hours after Tillis said in a statement that he 'cannot support' the current form of the president's spending bill. He pointed to expected cuts to Medicaid that he said would 'result in tens of billions of dollars in lost funding for North Carolina, including our hospitals and rural communities'. Tillis earlier told reporters that he had given Trump forewarning of his opposition to the legislation. 'I do believe the president is really focused on getting the tax portion of the bill done, and I support that, full stop,' he said. 'But it has evolved from a tax bill to one that includes health care and other things. And I said that in non-tax areas, we have a problem.' But Tillis waved off the notion of being concerned about Trump backing a primary challenger. Trump has backed primary challenges against Republicans who clashed with him. Notably, he endorsed Harriet Hageman's successful push to unseat Wyoming's former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney, who served on a House congressional committee that investigated Trump supporters' deadly US Capitol attack after he lost the 2020 presidential election. Trump's team also recently launched a group to unseat Kentucky congressman Thomas Massie, who opposed the US's 22 June strikes on Iran's nuclear sites. Massie also formed an alliance with the California Democratic congressman Ro Khanna to introduce a war powers resolution meant to 'prohibit involvement in Iran' as well as Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'. Chris LaCivita, senior Trump political adviser, has confirmed that he and Tony Fabrizio, another Trump adviser, would run an anti-Massie super political action committee (PAC). Trump's criticism of Tillis came as the Senate voted 51-49 in favor of passing a motion to advance the budget bill. It must now clear a formal Senate vote and be returned to the lower House for approval – which Trump wants done before the July 4th holiday. The legislation is a stuffed hamper of Republican priorities – making tax breaks from Trump's first presidency permanent, no taxes on tips, cutbacks to Medicaid, food stamps and green energy investments, and a commitment for an additional $350bn in spending on national security.

NC Republican Sen. Thom Tillis says he won't vote for Trump's ‘big beautiful bill'
NC Republican Sen. Thom Tillis says he won't vote for Trump's ‘big beautiful bill'

Yahoo

time29-06-2025

  • Politics
  • Yahoo

NC Republican Sen. Thom Tillis says he won't vote for Trump's ‘big beautiful bill'

U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, broke with his party Saturday and said he would not support the federal 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act,' the sweeping budget package that would enact much of President Donald Trump's agenda. In a statement, Tillis cited the bill's expected impacts on Medicaid and rural hospitals as key reasons for his decision. 'I did my homework on behalf of North Carolinians, and I cannot support this bill in its current form. It would result in tens of billions of dollars in lost funding for North Carolina, including our hospitals and rural communities,' Tillis' statement read. 'This will force the state to make painful decisions like eliminating Medicaid coverage for hundreds of thousands in the expansion population, and even reducing critical services for those in the traditional Medicaid population.' The Huntersville resident, a former speaker of the state House first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2014, is running for a third term. He has mostly — though not always — avoided publicly breaking with Trump this year. His vote on Trump's top legislative priority is sure to be an issue in 2026, both in a Republican primary election and in a general election against a Democrat. The Senate is set to consider the Trump-backed bill this weekend after releasing it Friday evening. Tillis told reporters he would vote against a procedural measure to advance the bill, as well as the bill itself, NBC News reported. The House approved its own version of the bill last month. The Senate's version of the bill would need to be approved by the House before it heads to Trump's desk. Trump has said he wants the bill finalized by July 4. The key goal of the bill is to cut taxes, as tax breaks approved during Trump's first term expire later this year, the Associated Press reported. The bill would also provide billions of dollars for the president's immigration and border agendas, including deportations. In order to pay for many of the bill's proposals, the AP reported, the measure would enact cuts on several longstanding government programs — including Medicaid. The House's version of the bill included less severe cuts to Medicaid, but would still leave more than 10 million people without health care coverage, the AP reported. That includes more than 260,000 in North Carolina, according to one estimate. In a June 12 letter to Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune — all Republicans — Senate Democrats cited data from the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at UNC-Chapel Hill to show that five rural hospitals in North Carolina could be at risk of closing under the bill's proposed cuts to Medicaid. 'There is a lot for North Carolinians to love about the rest of the One Big Beautiful Bill, including extending the historic Trump Tax Cuts, increasing the child tax credit, providing historic funding for border security, and ending wasteful spending,' Tillis said Saturday. 'We can and must accomplish this without hurting our rural communities and hospitals, and without jeopardizing access to care for hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians who need it the most.' Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, told The News & Observer this week that the bill would cost North Carolina billions in federal funding and potentially see hundreds of thousands in the state lose their insurance coverage. 'As it relates to health care access throughout this state ... it's going to be harder for people, particularly in the rural parts of North Carolina to find hospitals and clinics to actually get their health care,' Martin said. Martin also identified Tillis as 'one of the most vulnerable Senate Republicans.' Tillis' counterpart, Sen. Ted Budd, also a North Carolina Republican, said he would vote in favor of the procedural step to move the bill forward to floor debate. 'I support moving to debate on the One Big Beautiful Bill because it includes major reforms to slow the ballooning cost of government programs and root out waste, fraud, and abuse,' Budd said on X. 'There's more work to be done, but I strongly agree with President Trump that we must unleash America's full economic potential.' At the state level, Senate leader Phil Berger, an Eden Republican, said on X Saturday he supports the bill and that 'the legislature will work through any implementation issues.' Politics reporter Kyle Ingram contributed to this report.

Trump to pick new top D.C. prosecutor after Ed Martin fails to secure support
Trump to pick new top D.C. prosecutor after Ed Martin fails to secure support

Reuters

time08-05-2025

  • Politics
  • Reuters

Trump to pick new top D.C. prosecutor after Ed Martin fails to secure support

WASHINGTON, May 8 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Thursday said he plans to nominate a new candidate to serve as Washington, D.C.'s top federal prosecutor, after his first pick Ed Martin failed to garner enough support to advance in the U.S. Senate. "I was disappointed. A lot of people were disappointed, but that's the way it works sometimes," Trump said at an event at the White House to announce an initial trade pact with the United Kingdom. "We have somebody else that we'll be announcing over the next two days who's going to be great." A spokesperson for Martin's office could not be immediately reached for comment. A source close to the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this week said the committee would not move forward with a vote before Martin's interim term expires on May 20. Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who sits on the committee, appeared to deal Martin's nomination a fatal blow when he told reporters at the Capitol that he could not support him because of Martin's views about the January 6, 2021 attack at the U.S. Capitol by Trump's supporters. Martin faced opposition over his conduct in office, political advocacy and support for people who took part in the U.S. Capitol attack on January 6, 2021. His tenure has been marked by Trump's sweeping pardons for nearly all of the January 6 participants, firings and demotions of career prosecutors who worked on those investigations and unusual public threats to investigate people - including members of Congress - who have opposed the Trump administration's agenda. Martin previously defended three former January 6 defendants in court and was a supporter of Trump's false claims that the 2020 election had been stolen through voter fraud. He also faced criticism from Democrats over his ties to Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, an Army reservist convicted of storming the Capitol whom prosecutors described as a Nazi sympathizer, a claim Hale-Cusanelli's lawyer denied. It is unclear whom Trump might tap for the U.S. Attorney role. Names that had been floated previously as possible candidates have included Sam Ramer, the current general counsel at the FBI, and defense attorney John Irving, who worked at the Environmental Protection Agency during Trump's first term. It was also unclear what is next for Martin. Trump said Thursday he would be looking to possibly give him a different role in the administration.

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