U.S. President Donald Trump looks on as a member of the media raises their hand, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 1, 2025. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) was hammered Friday evening in an MSNBC analysis for taking the "easy way out" after vowing to call "balls and strikes" on the Trump administration.
Tillis has been critical of Trump, opposed the "big, beautiful bill" over concerns about harsh Medicaid cuts, and warned the president about the political risks of its passage. Trump attacked Tillis on social media, accusing him of failing to support top MAGA priorities.
Alexander Puri, anchor producer for "The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell," wrote in a piece for MSNBC that despite his pledge to "call balls and strikes as I see fit," so far, Tillis has failed to meet the moment.
In June, Tillis said it’s become "increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species." No longer facing a bruising re-election campaign, Tillis said he looked "forward to having the pure freedom to call the balls and strikes as I see fit.”
"As it turns out, he doesn’t make a great umpire," wrote Puri, pointing to Tillis' decision this week to vote to confirm former Trump attorney Emil Bove to a lifetime appointment on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Senate ignored whistleblowers and hundreds of attorneys and judges sounding the alarm that Bove's record proves he's unfit, including reports that he told prosecutors to ignore court orders and then lied about it.
"In the type of political culture Tillis professes to yearn for, one in which service to country supersedes fealty to party leaders, the Senate would unanimously reject any nominee with such an extensive catalog of concerns," wrote Puri.
But only Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) broke ranks to do so.
Puri said that what feels "most disappointing" about Tillis’ "partisan submission" is the knowledge he "could have done better."
He helped end the nomination of Ed Martin for U.S. prosecutor in Washington, D.C. and forced Vice President JD Vance to cast the tie-breaking vote to pass Trump's "big beautiful bill."
"Now, Tillis is even more independent than ever — allegedly," wrote Puri. "Free from the rat race of primaries and fundraising cycles, some Democrats hoped that he would continue to stand as a check against the more radical items of his party’s agenda. But for all of Tillis’ rhetoric about higher principles, his vote to confirm Bove demonstrates just how comfortable he still is taking the easy way out."