Trump threatens backing primary challenge against GOP Sen. Thom Tillis over his 'big, beautiful bill' vote

NBC News ^ | June 28, 2025 | Nnamdi Egwuonwu and Sahil Kapur

[Governor Dinwiddie]

YES!

[bigbob]

Tillis does not understand his role in the Trumpiverse.

He must go.

[Nextrush]

Stop beating up the Libertarians and go for the RINO’s.

[mass55th]

"Stop beating up the Libertarians and go for the RINO’s."

Tillis is a registered Republican, and a Rino. Rand Paul is a registered Republican, and a Rino.

[gopno1]

Do the news companies have any white, non-foreign authors anymore? I never thought I’d be longing for the days of a Bill Press by line...lol

[Nextrush]

Balancing the budget isn’t RINO spending too much money is wrong that’s why I got drawn into being “Conservative” as teenager.

Still the right idea passed down to me from Father and Grandfather which is much more important than any politics.

[TTFlyer]

Tillis is an idiot. Wake up.

[Nextrush]

He is further Left unlike Rand Paul.

[FLT-bird]

We’re way ahead of you President Trump. I and many others left messages telling him directly that we would support any primary challenger and if that did not work. would sit out the election rather than vote for him when he opposed the DA who would’ve cleaned up the DC swamp.

[backpacker_c]

Trump apparently went golfing with lindsey graham, eric schmitt, and rand paul saturday, to talk and negotiate for support and votes.

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/trump-golfs-republican-senators-schmitt-graham-paul-ahead-big-beautiful-bill-vote

I guess rand paul stood firm on his demand increasing the debt ceiling be taken out....

rand probably also asked his cuts to funding of the border wall,

and halving the border patrol budget.

It appears rand paul didn’t get Trump to bend the knee to rand, so rand voted no....

Like I said previously, he might as well become a democrat, the way he stands in opposition to Trump

[mass55th]

"It appears rand paul didn’t get Trump to bend the knee to rand, so rand voted no...."

I hope he's sulking like the baby he is.

[frank ballenger]

Tillis felt better after the rancor and arguing when three huge guys in black suits and sunglasses insisted he go for a ride with them.
“Getting out in the fresh night air will do you some good. You’ve been under a lot of stress lately.”
They drove to a place Tillis didn’t remember seeing, maybe because it was so dark with no street lights under the bridge.
🚘🌆🌉

[nathanbedford]

The record: I believe the national debt represents an existential threat to the constitutional democracy of the United States. At this moment in time, I believe that only Donald Trump to lead the nation and avoid death spiral. Only Donald Trump can, no one else can.

I believe that Rand Paul also believes that the national debt is a real and imminent existential threat to our constitutional system. I believe that his commitment on this issue is not new but of long standing, his resistance to the big beautiful bill is a matter of conscience.

The bill itself is a disgrace, it spends more and fails to cut in real time but promises the opposite. Standing alone, the bill is indefensible. But the bill does not stand alone, it stands in the context of a potential national debt generated death spiral. Donald Trump's solution, therefore, is our only solution.

Donald Trump sees the way out of our national peril is to grow the economy without real effort to significantly cut spending, although gestures and speeches in that direction were made. But when it came time to incorporate DOGE revelations and recommendations, the air went out of the balloon.

To a libertarian whose conservatism was inherited with DNA from his father, Paul simply does not believe that you can spend your way to a balanced budget, or even a manageable deficit.

Trump turned to stimulating the economy in his first administration and did indeed have the economy roaring but the question of whether he would close the budget deficit was mooted by Covid. When that black Swan struck, the deficits and the debt ballooned.

I don't fault Rand Paul for taking that lesson from history. No one, not even Donald Trump, guarantee no black Swan.

[Hieronymus]

Very good analysis.

There is room for dispute about “when COVID struck”—COVID could be an act of nature/scourge from GOD——or it could have a more nefarious origin-—”when we were attacked with COVID” better fits the later possibility.

[Adder]

Tillis is a sleazy RINO and NOT a Libertarian.

AND a trough feeder. His opposition is only about money, not principle.

No use for the man anymore. I just hope there is a viable candidate to run against him in the primary. I am betting Royboy Cooper will run and he will be formidable to beat [because a lot of NC-ans are just stupid].
We need to dump Tillis and keep the seat...

[palmer]

Donald Trump's solution, therefore, is our only solution.

As you point out it's not a real solution. It certainly isn't our only solution. We could have more rescission bills passing with 51 votes in the Senate. The only problem with rescission bills is that spineless senators don't want to vote on them. They want to be seen as pro-everything, including dog poop radio.

[Psalm 73]

Although I don't always agree with Rand Paul, he at least stays pretty consistent with his world-view.

Tillis, on the other hand, has got a bit of a grifter feel about him, and seems to be always angling for a better deal for Thom.

[july4thfreedomfoundation]

I remember when President Trump pardoned the J6 hostages on January 20th.

A reporter approached Tillis as he was boarding an elevator at the Capitol.

Tillis had a disgusted look on his face and said he was opposed to the pardons.

I wonder how Tillis would like to be locked up for three years without trial for a non-crime. He’s a POS.

[Señor Presidente]

You’re right about Tillis. He always suddenly “stands on principle” when it affords an opportunity to backstab Trump. I can’t think of one good thing he’s done for NC or the conservative cause since being elected.

I detest Cooper but think he would win a two way race against Tillis.