‘He’s free of all the politics’: How Thom Tillis became what passes for a GOP rebel in DC

By: David Lightman

Outlets: DC Bureau (States Newsroom)

Published: March 17, 2026

Words: 1,529

Last Updated: 34 minutes ago

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WASHINGTON — Sure, Sen. Thom Tillis has become the most visible, outspoken Republican insider critic of the second Trump administration. But don’t mistake Tillis for a maverick.

The North Carolina senator is being who he’s long been, the sort of GOP stalwart known as an establishment Republican. A Republican who’s conservative on fiscal issues, usually pragmatic on other stuff. A Chamber of Commerce Republican. A Bush-Romney Republican.

“Thom Tillis was, and is, best understood not as a …

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