Two-faced Thom
Politics is a demanding profession. Constantly in the public eye, with every statement and vote reviewed and analysed, politicians tend to adopt one of four familiar responses. Some choose to be clear, assertive and bold: “this is what I stand for, and I will not be swayed”. They are the politicians we remember; Bernie Sanders is a good example. Love them or hate them, they stick by their principles. They are almost the complete opposite to another group, those who hide behind party loyalty, voting as the leadership demands, clearing their speeches with the people at the top; the almost invisible foot-solders of the party. Enjoying a steady income while they can, they dream of business board appointments when they get dropped or lose an election.
These two categories include the majority, but there are two others. There are politicians with a conscience, making clear their dilemmas, publicly voicing uncertainties or conflicts, questioning where their loyalties really sit. We admire them for revealing the ethical challenges they see beneath a legislative decision. John McCain was an exemplar of that approach. Finally, some choose to be nice, agreeing with whoever is in the room, trying to say the right things to each and every audience. Being nice soon runs out of credibility, however, and those in this group either may take a bold approach (rarely), or more often disappear from view as two-faced nonentities.
North Carolina has two Republican Senators, Richard Burr and Thom Tillis. Richard Burr is a party line nobody, who will not be standing for re-election in 2022. Looking back, I think his greatest claim to fame might be he has been the second highest recipient of gun lobby (NRA) funding among the 100 senators, beaten to second place by John McCain. McCain received $7,740,521 in support, Burr $6,986,931, and he was nearly $1.5m ahead of the next two on the list. Thom Tillis was the fourth, with $4,418,012, just a $150,000 behind Roy Blunt (a religious-right Missouri senator, with a track record against gay marriage, abortion, etc.).
Richard Burr is a straight party-line man, almost all the time. Among the highlights, we might note he supported the infamous Citizens United decision by the Supreme Court. That’s the one which allows unions and corporations (but not regular citizens) to spend an unlimited amount of money on political advertising and other activities, especially prior to elections. From a banking state, as you might expect he believes the government should have less control over the banking industry. He had a brief moment in the limelight in 2008 during the Global Financial Crisis when he claimed he was going to an ATM every day and taking out cash, as he thought the financial system was about to collapse. Unsurprisingly, he is opposed to tax increases for any reason, especially raising taxes on businesses or high-income people to fund public services.
Back in 2015 he stated his belief that climate change is not a hoax. In 2016 he clarified his earlier statement by asserting humans hadn’t caused climate change, and opposing efforts by the government to restrict the release of greenhouse gases. Just in case there was any confusion, in the same year he made it clear he does not agree with federal grants or subsidies to encourage the production of renewable energy. It might seem odd that recently Burr was one of nine founding members of the Roosevelt Conservation Caucus, a group of Republican members of Congress, with a focus on environmental issues: its specific priorities include reducing plastic pollution, and heightening access to public lands and waters for outdoor recreation, hunting and fishing.
Ah, the key word there is hunting. Did you forget his NRA funding? On guns, he is keen to keep his A+ rating. He voted against the 2013 legislation which would have extended background checks to internet and gun show weapon purchasing. He consistently supports unrestricted access to guns. Famously, in 2015, speaking on the topic of guns to a GOP group, he joked that a magazine cover of Hillary Clinton ought to have had a bullseye on it. Yes, he quickly apologized for the comment, but it matched a reply he gave in 2017 on the campaign trail. When asked about Trump’s offensive remarks regarding women, he replied Trump should be forgiven for a few mistakes and given time to change. How much longer do we wait?
He’s a good, loyal foot soldier. He has voted with Trump around 96% of the time, and only disagreed occasionally on international sanctions. Having made it clear he would not stand for another term, Burr enjoyed a moment of glory this year. The Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee, chaired by Burr, daringly subpoenaed Donald Trump Jr. to answer questions about his previous testimony before Senate investigators in relation to the Russia investigation.[i] The younger Trump explained the project to build a Trump Tower in Moscow was Michael Cohen’s idea (President Trump’s former attorney): “We don’t know anything about it. Ultimately, it was Michael Cohen essentially trying to get a deal done.” So that’s alright then; well done, Richard.
It’s time to look at North Carolina’s junior senator. When 19 years old, Thom Tillis married his high school girlfriend, but later they divorced. However, they got back together, remarried, only to divorce a second time. [ii] That might seem irrelevant, but it’s one kind of introduction to Thom, who’s clearly able to change his mind! OK, I know, it’s gratuitous comment: sorry!
Tillis was announced the winner of the close Senate race in 2014, with 48.82 percent of the vote, the lowest winning total in North Carolina history for a U.S. Senate candidate. During the campaign, he paid $30,000 to Cambridge Analytica; the North Carolina Republican Party added $150,000. Cambridge Analytica promoted their role in his election as a case study. This was the company banned by Facebook in 2018 following reports that the firm had illicitly obtained data on Facebook users. [iii] It’s still not clear whether Tillis benefitted from Cambridge Analytica’s illegal activities or if their role in the Senate race did swing a close election, but is there any doubt? Anyway, in Senate he looks after his supporters: for example, he’s keen to deregulate the major banks so they can act more riskily: oh, and yes, they’re among his major donors!
Perhaps looking at his views on marriage would help. In 2012, when he was Speaker for the NC State government, Tillis supported a constitutional amendment to define marriage as occurring between one man and one woman. In 2014 Tillis announced that he opposed a state ruling allowing same sex marriage. He was almost alone among the major elected North Carolina Republican officials at the time, even Governor Pat McCrory accepting the decision. Standing for a principle? In 2015, shortly after his inauguration to the Senate, Tillis voted in favor of an amendment to a non-binding resolution that would allow same-sex married couples living in states that don’t recognize same-sex marriage to have access to government resources. I can’t imagine why but these contradictory actions have led some to criticize Tillis as being both “for and against” same sex marriage. Are you confused? Perhaps he’s just ‘for’ his own re-election?
Sometimes Tillis is blatant about both keeping his cake and eating it. In 2014, Tillis said that climate change is not a fact, and the following year voted against an amendment stating human activity is a contributor. In 2017 he had been one of 22 senators to sign a letter to Trump to have the United States withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change. Just to be on the safe side, in 2018, Tillis said that human activity was a contributing factor to climate change. Just so you’re clear, Tillis has received over $260,000 from oil, gas, and coal interests since 2012.
His most notorious action was in early 2019. In February, Tillis responded to Trump’s national emergency declaration to circumvent Congress and fund a wall on the southern border. “I cannot justify providing the executive with more ways to bypass Congress. As a conservative, I cannot endorse a precedent that I know future left-wing presidents will exploit to advance radical policies that will erode economic and individual freedoms.” Whoa, he took a stand! It didn’t last long. In March, facing pressure from Trump and other conservatives to support the national emergency declaration, with several floating the possibility of a primary challenge against him in 2020, he changed his mind, voting to support the declaration. It earned him a reputation as a flip-flopper (a remarkable flip-flop according to the Washington Post, and an Olympic gold flip flop according to the NC Fayetteville Observer). [iv] Now there’s an achievement!
He likes flip-flopping. In December 2018 Tillis had warned about an early withdrawal in Syria. “We need to make sure the withdrawal of America’s presence from Syria is done the right way, at the right time,” he said. “Withdrawal from Syria at the current time could lead to the resurgence of ISIS and provide a boost to Russia and Iran.” Clear? But in October of this year he said he was giving President Donald Trump “the benefit of the doubt” on his decision to pull U.S. troops from Syria, breaking with fellow Republicans who have criticized the decision. Justifying this flip-flop he added “The president may be working on more information than I have.” [v] Perhaps the key information for Thom is that re-election time getting close: like Burr he is supporting Trump all the way through the impeachment hearings. No flip-flopping there!
I had already decided Tillis was interesting. Two years ago I wrote to him after reading his letter in the Charlotte Observer: [vi]
“I’ll be reaching across the aisle to find opportunities to work with Democrats on the issues that desperately need to be addressed: reforming the nation’s broken immigration system, providing regulatory relief, overhauling the VA, reforming our criminal justice system and modernizing our nation’s crumbling infrastructure. Republicans are in power and have the potential to deliver historic results — but only if we work together with the Democrats who also want to see progress. We owe it to the American people to set aside the areas where our ideology may prevent progress and find common ground where there are plenty of opportunities to produce good results.”
Among other topics, I asked about his health care plans, and he wrote back on 10 May 2017:
I believe that Obamacare is on an unsustainable course and that reform is necessary before it gets worse. We must find a way to control health care costs and give Americans access to affordable care. Even some of Obamacare’s strongest supporters have acknowledged that the law has fundamental flaws that must be addressed, confirmed by the continued trend of insurers dropping out of Obamacare exchanges throughout the nation … The mandates and coercive penalties on health insurance have also placed costly burdens on families and businesses … I support efforts to correct this flawed law to provide quality care and certainty to American families. Reform must be aimed at improving health care outcomes for hardworking Americans by controlling costs and providing access to affordable care without the burden of costly mandates.
Two years later and I’m still waiting to see any of this action. Is he still reaching across the aisle? I guess that’s a long distance to go, even for a flip-flopper.
Another topic I had asked about was on DACA. He replied on 18 September 2017:
As you are aware, on September 5, 2017, the Trump Administration announced it would end the Obama era program known as DACA with a six month delay. I firmly believe that Congress, not the executive branch, must confront the issue of undocumented people who arrived as children through a decision made by their parents to stay in this country where they have begun to build their lives. I am in the process of drafting legislation that will provide a fair and rigorous path for undocumented children to earn legal status by requiring them to be employed, pursue higher education, or serve in our Armed Forces. … This legislation would be a permanent fix to address the long-term uncertainty facing undocumented youth.
Still waiting on that, too! No action, so now the likely permanent fix will be to kick them out.
Finally, this year I asked about his current views on Climate Change. In September, he wrote:
Climate change is a complex, multifaceted issue. I believe that innovation will be the key to curbing human contributions to climate change – just as American innovation and ingenuity allowed our country to lead the space race, the development of modern medicine, and the creation of the Internet. I support an all of the above energy strategy that balances energy security and industrial competitiveness with climate concerns. … I support real, tangible, free-market solutions to the very serious problems that face our state, which is on the front lines of sea level rise and increasingly frequent natural disasters. … I will continue working with my colleagues, Republican and Democrat alike, to find responsible and achievable policies that work for all Americans. We must use an all of the above strategy to adapt, become more resilient, and to mitigate damages from climate change. There are policies that can help bend the curve of human contributions to greenhouse gas emissions, without placing the United States at a competitive disadvantage or harming low-income and rural communities.
I replied, asking for some rather more specific information, but, guess what, I’m still waiting on that one, too! I guess Tillis must be busy, helping “bend the curve” maybe?
All the while, Thom keeps wriggling, and like a worm he turns first one way and then the other. With Senate elections on the horizon, I think it’s time to send him off to a well-deserved (??) bank directorship. Goodbye, two-faced Thom; we’ll be delighted to see you go, and we promise we won’t miss you. By the way, unlike us you don’t need to wait – you could go now!
[i] https://www.axios.com/senate-intelligence-committee-donald-trump-jr-subpoena-russia-
[ii] https://www.politico.com/story/2014/05/10-things-to-know-about-thom-tillis-106445
[iii] https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/politics-columns-blogs/under-the-dome/article205946479.html
[iv] For a full discussion see Paula Specht, News and Observer, 20 March 2019
[v] https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politics-government/article235958147.html#storylink=cpy, 18/1/17
[vi] I had urged him to respect his oath of office, as are Vets today: https://www.defendamericandemocracy.org
