The moral clarity and moral failings of Thom Tillis

The North Carolina Senator consistently falls short of his own moral code

Thom Tillis perpetually disappoints me. He’s a man who knows what is right but can’t bring himself to do it. He publicly says one thing and then does another. I hope he’s embarrassed, but I fear he’s just craven.

Just a little over a week ago, Tillis took his GOP colleagues to task for refusing to support the border deal being negotiated by fellow Senators. “I didn’t come here to have the president as a boss or a candidate as a boss. I came here to pass good, solid policy. It is immoral for me to think you looked the other way because you think this is the linchpin for President Trump to win.”

However, once the committee negotiating the bill released the strongest border protection bill in decades, Republicans balked. Suddenly, Tillis couldn’t meet his own moral standard, releasing a statement that read, “After reviewing the bill text, there are provisions that are highly problematic, especially considering the fact that President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas caused this border crisis and have refused to use existing laws already on the books to address it. It is hard to trust that the Biden Administration would even implement this bill in good faith. I will vote no.” One political observer called it “peak cynicism.”

Of course, Tillis wasn’t the only GOP Senator to backtrack on the bill. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell came out in support of it before he was against it. House Republican leaders demanded a border package to pass aid to Ukraine but then tanked the idea once the Senate called their bluff. The whole party has demonstrated an inability or unwillingness to govern.

For Tillis, it’s like deja vu all over again. Back in 2019, he wrote a widely read op-ed in the Washington Post opposing Donald Trump’s plan to declare a national emergency at our Southern Border. When he was criticized by Republicans for the article, Tillis said, “It’s never a tough vote for me when I’m standing on principle.” Then, when the bill came to a vote, Tillis voted against himself and his principles. He became the laughingstock of Washington.

Thom Tillis got into politics for all the right reasons. He was first elected to local office because he wanted more bike paths in his hometown. He quickly moved up the ladder, first unseating an incumbent legislator in a Republican primary and then becoming state House Speaker in only his third term. Somewhere along the way, he lost his bearing, putting his ambition ahead of his moral fortitude.

I’ve been sharply critical of Tillis throughout his career. I’m a partisan Democrat. But I’m also an American citizen and I want to see our country succeed and government do what’s right. As long as we have a two-party system, I believe we need a conservative party with leaders who are loyal to the constitution and who will put country before party. I keep making the mistake that Tillis is one of those people. I think he wants to be.

Tillis represents too many Republicans today. The party once had a core set of conservative beliefs that included respect for the rule of law, distrust of big government, and a moral code that led to the impeachment of Bill Clinton for an extramarital affair (even if Republicans like to claim it was for lying). Today, they are arguing that former presidents are above the law, Republicans are trying to restrict travel of individual citizens, and the likely presidential nominee paid off a porn star in an attempt to hide an extramarital affair. Instead of standing on principle, Republicans like Tillis just fall in line.

At a time when we desperately need Republicans with moral fortitude, they are nowhere to be found. They have surrendered to the reactionary populist wing of the party where everything is politics and policy has little bearing. By undermining themselves, Senators like Tillis and McConnell elevate voices like Marjorie Taylor Green, Josh Hawley, and Ted Cruz while diminishing their own standing in the party. With Cruz saying Mitch McConnell needs to step down, the GOP’s only remaining rudder is Donald Trump and his lackeys in the House.

Throughout his career in Washington, Tillis has shown a willingness to compromise and negotiate. I keep mistaking that desire to govern with leadership. The GOP needs leaders with the courage of their convictions to move beyond the dangerous autocratic impulses of Trumpism. Unfortunately, Thom Tillis has repeatedly shown himself unwilling to live by his own words even though he clearly knows what is right. It either cynicism or cowardice. I’m not sure which is worse.