Sen. Thom Tillis is drawing a hard line against the Republican budget reconciliation bill, telling colleagues he will reject it if the Senate brings it to a vote this week.
The North Carolina Republican sent an email to fellow GOP senators this morning laying out his position in blunt terms. Two people with knowledge of the matter confirmed Tillis' firm stance and the contents of his message. His main grievance centers on the timing of the vote and provisions tied to ballroom funding, which he views as problematic.
The $72 billion package includes $1 billion allocated to the Secret Service, portions of which would cover security upgrades to the East Wing ballroom. That detail has become a lightning rod for Republican discontent. At least six GOP senators, including Tillis, Curtis, Paul, Scott, Collins, and Murkowski, have objected to any ballroom-related spending, citing Trump's earlier promise that private donations would cover such renovations.
GOP leadership plans to advance the bill through committee Wednesday with a floor vote Thursday. But the timing creates political pressure within the party itself. Tillis is particularly upset about the Louisiana primary outcome that cost Sen. Bill Cassidy his seat, and he is warning that this week's Senate schedule could damage Sen. John Cornyn's position in a Texas GOP runoff next week. Tillis wants Cornyn free to campaign in Texas rather than locked in Washington for votes.
Tillis signaled he is not categorically opposed to the overall bill. His objections are specific: the rushed timeline and the ballroom funding mechanism. That opening suggests room for negotiation, though any shift in the current bill faces another procedural hurdle.
A Senate parliamentarian ruling Saturday night removed the Secret Service funding from the package, which eliminates the immediate ballroom problem. But Republicans face exposure on the issue if Democrats use the vote-a-rama process, expected after committee passage, to introduce amendments highlighting the ballroom spending. Such moves could put vulnerable GOP senators in an awkward position ahead of their own elections.
Tillis also sees shades of earlier spending legislation he opposed, viewing the current package through the lens of that previous frustration. His public pushback reflects deeper fissures in the Republican conference over budget priorities and political timing as the party juggles legislative ambitions with campaign schedules.
Author James Rodriguez: "Tillis has leverage here, and he knows it, which makes this week's floor calendar a real gamble for McConnell."
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