Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) did something very unusual: he openly told Donald Trump that he was completely wrong.
After Trump used his social media platform, Truth Social, to support his controversial “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” claiming that the people who attacked police and stormed the Capitol on January 6th were “great American Patriots” who were “hunted down like dogs,” Tillis responded with a strong statement.
He said, “The people who attacked police officers and hurt our Capitol are not ‘great American patriots’ who are ‘victims of government abuse.’ Anyone who attacked law enforcement should still be in prison, not getting money from the government.”
This is a big deal.
A Republican senator directly disagreed with the President’s description of the Capitol attack and refused to call the violence against police as patriotism.
It gets even more interesting.
Tillis didn’t stop there.He used Trump’s argument to back up what he and Senator John Cornyn have been saying all along: “The President made it clear today that the so-called Anti Weaponization Fund is still active, which is why we are trying to formally end it.”
In other words, Trump’s attempt to attack Cornyn backfired, giving Tillis the confirmation he needed that the fund everyone thought was gone is still very much alive.
Tillis also pointed out that the real problem isn’t from him or Cornyn, but from within Trump’s circle.
He praised Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche as “honest, thoughtful, and patient,” and blamed the issue on what he called “an ineffective personal advisor to the President” who “refuses to change the false settlement.”
Tillis’s support for Blanche might be seen as something extreme by many, and it might be his way of staying neutral until Blanche meets certain conditions.
Still, this is a Republican senator publicly disagreeing with Trump’s view of a violent attack on American democracy, while also showing that the real reason a Cabinet position is delayed is because Trump’s inner circle prefers to protect a fund for people involved in an insurrection instead of setting up basic accountability.
When members of Trump’s own party start standing up like this, it’s important to pay attention.
Trump’s low popularity is causing him to lose control of his party, and that’s a positive development.
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