GOP Senator Thom Tillis announces he will not seek re-election
June 29 (UPI) -- Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C, said Sunday that he would not seek re-election, opening up a seat in a state that was already considered a battleground in the 2026 midterm elections.
Tillis made the announcement after voting against a procedural measure Saturday night to clear the way for debate on the Senate version of the Trump administration's budget reconciliation bill.
"As many of my colleagues have noticed over the last year, and at times even joked about, I haven't exactly been excited about running for another term." Tillis said in a statement sent to media outlets.
"That is true since the choice is between spending another six years in Washington or spending that time with the love of my life Susan, our two children, three beautiful grandchildren, and the rest of our extended family back home. It's not a hard choice and I will not be seeking re-election."
President Donald Trump threatened Tillis with a primary challenge in N.C. in the 2026 midterms following the GOP Senator's vote against moving the budget bill to the Senate floor for debate.
Trump took to social media to criticize Tillis.
"Thom Tillis is making a BIG MISTAKE for America, and the Wonderful People of North Carolina!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social account Saturday night.
In a statement following the vote Saturday night, Tillis said he was putting the interests of his constituents above party politics.
"I did my homework on behalf of North Carolinians, and I cannot support this bill in its current form," Tillis wrote.
"It would result in tens of billions of dollars in funding for North Carolina, including our hospitals and rural communities."
Tillis also noted that proposed cuts would impact rural hospitals and fall squarely on Medicaid recipients who rely on the program as their only source of medical insurance.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
UPI
19 minutes ago
- UPI
Former Delaware Gov. Michael Castle dies at 86
1 of 3 | Former Congressman and Gov. Michael N. Castle, R-Del., has died at the age of 86, the politician's family confirmed in a post online. File Photo (2009) by Roger L. Wollenberg/UPI | License Photo Aug. 15 (UPI) -- Former congressman and Gov. Michael N. Castle, R-Del., has died at the age of 86, the politician's family confirmed in a post online. The moderate Republican served two terms as governor between 1985 and 1992 before being elected to Congress in 1993. "Congressman Mike Castle was a founding member of the Republican Main Street Partnership, a leading organization for centrist Republicans, and worked in a bipartisan manner to help move people from welfare to work, support fiscally responsible government, improve public education, and protect the community," his family said in the statement. "He served on the House Committee on Financial Services, Committee on Education and Workforce and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence." Castle, who is survived by his wife of over 33 years, Jane DiSabatino, ultimately became the longest-serving member of Congress from Delaware in the state's history. He also served as the lieutenant governor of Delaware from 1981 to 1985 prior to being elected governor, and in the state legislature before that. "Over the arc of the more than 40 years that I knew him - I met him when I was 16 - he repeatedly provided his knowledge and expertise to help me along my own way," Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said in a statement, calling Castle an "incredible man." "When we eventually ran against each other, I did my absolute best to run a respectful, positive, policy-based campaign. As we campaigned against each other, I only liked him more." Castle was known as a backer of educational and environmental reforms. As a member of Congress, Castle was a major proponent of the 2001 "No Child Left Behind," legislation that was an effort to improve test scores among U.S. school children. "Governor Castle understood there is no greater legacy we leave to future generations than the quality of our environment. As Governor, his administration's Environmental Legacy program to protect and preserve forests, wetlands, and beaches won recognition for its foresight and impact," his family said in the statement. In addition to DiSabatino, who he married in 1992, Castle is survived by his "many nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews." Visitation will take place August 21 at a funeral home in Wilmington, Del. Notable deaths of 2025 Astronaut Jim Lovell, commander of the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission to the moon, died August 8, 2025, in Illinois, his family announced. He was 97. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo
Politico
20 minutes ago
- Politico
Trump administration deepens crackdown on solar and wind tax credits
The GOP law terminated existing investment and production tax credits for solar and wind projects that start producing electricity after 2027, but provided more time for projects that begin construction within a year. Trump then directed Treasury to 'strictly enforce' the end of the credits for wind and solar facilities, including by issuing new guidance concerning when a project is deemed to have begun construction. Traditionally, that longstanding metric has allowed projects to qualify by taking steps such as incurring 5 percent of a project's total cost or beginning physical construction activities. Tax lawyers and clean energy developers have warned the guidance could mark an unprecedented and legally dubious attempt to rewrite congressional intent, and could be challenged in court. Grassley has also said he would object to consideration of the Treasury nominees until he can be 'certain that such rules and regulations adhere to the law and congressional intent.' But the guidance will have immediate impact for hundreds of planned solar and wind projects across the country. Adrian Deveny, founder and president of policy advisory firm Climate Vision, said the new guidance will 'pull the rug out from under the entire pipeline of wind and solar projects that are in development.' Deveny, who helped craft the clean energy credits as a former policy director for Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer, said Trump is 'determined to jack up American energy bills.' Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association, in a statement called it a 'blatant rejection' of what Congress passed in the tax law. In the weeks following Trump's directive, the administration has undertaken a host of actions across agencies to further imperil wind and solar development, including major actions at the Interior Department that have received pushback from some Senate Republicans. The new Treasury guidance — which is not open to public comment — will apply to projects after Sept. 2.
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Texas megadonor Alex Fairly to fund legal bid to keep GOP lawmakers on the primary ballot
A new Texas GOP megadonor says he plans to fund a legal challenge against the Republican Party of Texas and its governing executive committee if they move forward with plans to censure Republican state lawmakers and block them from the March primary ballot. Amarillo businessman Alex Fairly said in a statement Friday that he would tap into the $20 million political action committee he launched last year to challenge the censures in court if the State Republican Executive Committee goes ahead with plans to formally admonish dozens of GOP lawmakers in October. 'The discussions taking place by the State Republican Executive Committee to block candidates from appearing on the primary ballot is not only unlawful, it's disastrous for the Republican Party of Texas,' Fairly said in a statement, in which he vowed to 'fully fund' a legal opposition effort. Fairly's announcement comes hours before the executive committee will meet to finalize a review of the 2025 legislative session. That report could become the basis for blocking GOP lawmakers from the ballot. 'People just hate accountability,' Texas GOP Chair Abraham George said in response to Fairly's news. The state Republican Party created the new rule last year as a way to hold GOP lawmakers accountable for votes that don't strictly align with the state party's legislative priorities and party principles. In order to draft a censure that could lead the Texas GOP to ban someone from the primary ballot, the offending lawmaker must have committed at least three censurable offenses in their most recent term. Such acts are defined as those contrary to the party's legislative priorities and its core principles laid out in the preamble of the party platform. If the Texas GOP executive committee moves forward, Fairly said, he would fund a full legal challenge, arguing that the decision belongs to voters. 'Letting a handful of insiders dictate who can run in our primaries undermines both our party's core principles and the First Amendment,' Fairly added, referring to the delegates, chosen by local precinct chairs, who make up the GOP executive committee. As of mid-July, the Amarillo businessman had not spent any of the $20 million he put in the Texas Republican Leadership Fund since he created the PAC last December. One Senate Republican and 41 of 88 House Republicans committed at least three censurable offenses, according to the draft report to be taken up Friday. When adding the election of Rep. Dustin Burrows as House speaker, that number increases to 45 House members, a majority of the caucus. Before the legislative session started, the state GOP opposed Burrows for House speaker and ran attack ads in his district. Some SREC members have pushed to consider a vote for Burrows as a censurable act, arguing it was the culmination of a conspiracy to give Democrats more power. However, the party will not unilaterally try to remove everyone eligible for a censure. Local party officials must initiate the censure and ask the SREC for permission to bar them from the ballot. State Rep. Caroline Fairly, the daughter of the Amarillo businessman serving in her first term, announced her support for Burrows on the final day of the speaker's race in January and racked up enough censurable offenses to be barred from the ballot. 'The death penalty' State party delegates, many of whom are among the party's most conservative activists, approved the censure rule at the Texas GOP's 2024 convention. The Fairly-backed legal challenge could mark the first test of the new rule, which critics say is illegal and goes against democratic principles. In the past week, the Republican Party of Texas's executive committee delayed its report and sought input from Republican lawmakers, knowing a legal fight was looming. 'I want the right people censured if they deserve a censure,' George told SREC members. 'I do not want anyone getting censured by county parties or districts if they don't deserve a censure. This is a serious matter for the party as a state party, so we want to do the right thing.' At Saturday's SREC meeting, Texas GOP general counsel Rachel Hooper said she supported the enhanced Rule 44 — the policy approved at the 2024 convention that lays the groundwork to bar ballot access — in part because she was upset the Texas House impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton the year before. 'Sometimes there's acts that are so bad that you need the death penalty,' Hooper said. So far, county parties have initiated censures against at least eight state representatives: Angie Chen Button of Garland, Giovanni Capriglione of Southlake, Charlie Geren of Fort Worth, Cody Harris of Palestine, Stan Lambert of Abilene, John McQueeney of Fort Worth, Morgan Meyer of University Park, Angelia Orr of Itasca. But while the party moves forward with the censure process, George has been publicly celebratory of Burrows. George and SREC members met with the Lubbock Republican, Gov. Greg Abbott and other state representatives at the Governor's Mansion on Saturday before the SREC meeting, marking Burrows' first audience with Texas GOP officials since his election as speaker in January. They did not discuss the censures, instead talking about conservative victories from the recent legislative session, Republicans' mid-decade congressional redistricting and House Democrats' quorum break, which has united Texas Republicans. 'We have an open line with the speaker,' George told the Tribune later that day. 'You don't have to agree all the time. We probably are still going to have some disagreements. That's part of the process.' Fairly's fight Fairly is new to Texas Republican politics, splashing onto the scene during the 2024 Republican primaries to become the 10th biggest donor in that year's state legislative races. He launched the PAC last year in the midst of a bruising fight for Texas House speaker. Originally, he seemed in lockstep with Republican Party of Texas leadership, declaring that he would use the money to target Republican lawmakers who did not come together to support Rep. David Cook of Mansfield, Burrows' rival who had the backing of the GOP caucus. But he has slowly shifted his position since, continuing to distance himself from the state's Republican Party leadership, which has received support from West Texas oil billionaires Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks in recent years. Dunn and Wilks have spent tens of millions of dollars supporting hardline conservative primary challengers, incrementally pulling the Texas GOP and Legislature toward their socially conservative stances. After initially declaring he would primary Republican House members who did not support Cook's speaker bid, Fairly quickly walked back that sentiment, issuing a new missive a few weeks later clarifying that he would not use the money to primary lawmakers who voted for Burrows. 'The vote for Speaker belongs to the members,' Fairly wrote in his follow-up statement. A few months later, Fairly distanced himself from Texas GOP leadership again when he criticized them for threatening to run primary opponents against members unless they passed all remaining bills related to their legislative priorities. In an interview, Fairly told the Tribune he called George, the GOP chair, and told him he felt his threats on social media were unproductive. 'I'm weary of this method of trying to get what we want,' Fairly said he told George. 'If this is how we're going to manage people … I may use my money to help balance this out.' This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Alex Fairly will fund legal bid to keep Texas GOP lawmakers on ballot
