{"id":3337,"date":"2026-07-15T19:37:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T19:37:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3337"},"modified":"2026-07-15T19:37:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T19:37:53","slug":"at-blanche-confirmation-hearing-the-old-thom-tillis-returns-with-a-whimper-opinion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3337","title":{"rendered":"At Blanche confirmation hearing, the old Thom Tillis returns with a whimper | Opinion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Despite a welcome streak of independence in recent months, Thom Tillis hasn\u2019t left his old ways behind completely.<\/p>\n

Read more Gaston County gives school district $5M as it faced another round of layoffs<\/a><\/p>\n

That much became clear Wednesday during the confirmation hearing of Todd Blanche, Donald Trump\u2019s pick for attorney general.<\/p>\n

After the firing of former AG Pam Bondi, Tillis made clear that he would not support a nominee who doesn\u2019t show independence from the White House, nor one who excuses the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Blanche doesn\u2019t pass either of those tests, a fact that was only reiterated by Wednesday\u2019s hearing.<\/p>\n

Yet Tillis\u2019 reservations<\/a> \u2014 and his newfound backbone \u2014 seem to have disappeared in familiar fashion.<\/p>\n

Rather than asking Blanche the tough questions, Tillis spent the better part of five minutes ranting about his Democratic colleagues who criticized the Trump administration when \u201cPresident Biden did everything that you\u2019re accusing President Trump of doing.\u201d He bemoaned Biden\u2019s Justice Department for \u201coverprosecuting\u201d Jan. 6 participants, saying they \u201chad their careers and lives ruined because they did something stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gone was the newer version of Tillis who boldly voices his concerns and stands by them. In his place was the Tillis that we\u2019re used to, who talks about principles but abandons them when it actually matters.<\/p>\n

During the roughly five-hour hearing<\/a>, Blanche refused to criticize Trump\u2019s decision to pardon Jan. 6 rioters and called it \u201cgenerous.\u201d He made a damning Freudian slip<\/a> when asked about his relationship with Trump, saying \u201cI\u2019m his lawyer\u201d before quickly correcting it to the past tense. He refused to commit to meeting with Epstein survivors and downplayed the settlement he made that gave Trump immunity from tax audits. All of that should still raise bright red flags for Tillis, but he seems all too willing to overlook them. He\u2019s provided no satisfactory answer as to why his position changed, or why he doesn\u2019t believe that the red lines he laid out have been crossed. After the hearing, Tillis said<\/a> he still has concerns about the $1.8 billion \u201canti-weaponization\u201d fund, but reiterated that he\u2019s leaning toward supporting him.<\/p>\n

Read more NC woman in Florida asks deputy for directions, gets charged with DUI, sheriff says<\/a><\/p>\n

Of course, we\u2019ve seen Tillis do this enough times that it should no longer be surprising. He acts concerned about something, only to bend the knee at the first opportunity. But what makes it especially frustrating now is that we know he can be better. Since announcing his retirement from the Senate, he\u2019s shown glimpses of it repeatedly, and has taken bold stances that other Republicans are still too cowardly to take. In one particularly poignant moment of reflection, Tillis said recently<\/a> that he regrets his last-minute decision to support Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. But his backtracking on Blanche suggests he learned little from that experience.<\/p>\n

Toward the end of his questioning, Tillis made an effort to separate Blanche from the Trump administration\u2019s bad decisions.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou work for somebody, and you\u2019ve got to do what you\u2019re told to do,\u201d Tillis said.<\/p>\n

Ironically, that\u2019s the same argument that Tillis has used to avoid directly criticizing the president<\/a> even when he\u2019s criticized his administration. In Tillis\u2019 eyes, the fault often lies with the advisers who are telling Trump what to do, or with the Cabinet members who are undermining his noble agenda. Now, Tillis seems willing to shift the blame to Trump if it means he can take the easy way out on Blanche. It\u2019s a way of constantly passing the buck that allows Tillis to avoid demanding accountability when it\u2019s politically uncomfortable.<\/p>\n

Maybe North Carolina shouldn\u2019t have expected Tillis to be someone different than who he\u2019s always been. Maybe we were too quick to declare that he\u2019s changed. If Wednesday\u2019s hearing taught us anything, it\u2019s that the lines between the \u201cold\u201d and \u201cnew\u201d Tillis are simply blurrier than we thought.<\/p>\n

Deputy Opinion Editor Paige Masten covers politics and the 2026 elections for The Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer.<\/i><\/p>\n

Read more Wells Fargo signals more layoffs ahead for bank workers in latest efficiency move<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tillis\u2019 reservations \u2014 and his newfound backbone \u2014 seem to have disappeared in familiar fashion. | Opinion<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3336,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nAt Blanche confirmation hearing, the old Thom Tillis returns with a whimper | Opinion - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3337\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"At Blanche confirmation hearing, the old Thom Tillis returns with a whimper | Opinion - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Tillis\u2019 reservations \u2014 and his newfound backbone \u2014 seem to have disappeared in familiar fashion. | Opinion\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3337\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-15T19:37:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\"},\"headline\":\"At Blanche confirmation hearing, the old Thom Tillis returns with a whimper | Opinion\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-15T19:37:53+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337\"},\"wordCount\":720,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/f90f6ce41c9f9a8c70c32f20e3074fe7.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Read today's Edition\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337\",\"name\":\"At Blanche confirmation hearing, the old Thom Tillis returns with a whimper | Opinion - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/f90f6ce41c9f9a8c70c32f20e3074fe7.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-15T19:37:53+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3337#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/f90f6ce41c9f9a8c70c32f20e3074fe7.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/f90f6ce41c9f9a8c70c32f20e3074fe7.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":674,\"caption\":\"Sen. 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