Well that didn’t take long!

According to reports out this morning, Thom Tillis will soon be out of the Senate, deciding to not run for re-election and not risk getting primaried by President Trump in 2026.

Of course he phrased it as they always do — he just wants to spend more time with his family.

Ok, Thom.  Sure.

Multiple outlets are reporting on the statement from Tillis, although I note that as of press time for this article the statement is not posted to his website or to any of his social media channels.  It appears as though the statement was distributed to major news outlets before being posted, as Reuters, Fox News, CNN and many others are all reporting on it despite the statement not yet appearing online.

Thom Tillis routinely fought to increase American intervention abroad while rejecting border security at home. He has also been a chief obstacle to the timely confirmation of President Trump’s nominees.

His retirement is a golden opportunity to make North Carolina’s senators… pic.twitter.com/lrFL9Vaz5E

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) June 29, 2025

Here is the full statement:

That’s hard to read so here’s the full text:

THOM TILLIS
U.S. SENATOR for NORTH CAROLINA

Statement from Senator Thom Tillis
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, June 29, 2025

CONTACTS:
Daniel Keylin or Adam Webb | (202) 224-6342

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, North Carolina U.S. Senator Thom Tillis issued the following statement:

“It has been a blessing to go on a journey from living in a trailer park and making minimum wage as a young man to having the honor of serving as U.S. Senator for North Carolina.

I’m proud of my career in public service, including hard-fought victories like passing historic tax reform as North Carolina Speaker, and working in the Senate to help pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and confirm three conservative Supreme Court justices and counting.

What I’m most proud of are the bipartisan victories: passing the first-in-the-nation eugenics compensation as Speaker, and working across the aisle in the Senate to pass the largest investment in mental health in American history, passing the Respect for Marriage Act and monumental infrastructure investments, and reestablishing the Senate NATO Observer Group. Sometimes those bipartisan initiatives got me into trouble with my own party, but I wouldn’t have changed a single one.

In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species.

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Democrats recently lost two such leaders who were dedicated to making the Senate more of a functional and productive legislative body. They got things done. But they were shunned after they courageously refused to cave to their party bosses to nuke the filibuster for the sake of political expediency. They ultimately retired and their presence in the Senate chamber…

It underscores the greatest form of hypocrisy in American politics. When people see independent thinking on the other side, they cheer. But when those very same people see independent thinking coming from their side, they scorn, ostracize, and even censure them.

Too many elected officials are motivated by pure raw politics who really don’t give a damn about the people they promised to represent on the campaign trail. After they get elected, they don’t bother to do the hard work to research the policies they seek to implement and understand the consequences those policies could have on that young adult living in a trailer park, struggling to make ends meet.

As many of my colleagues have noticed over the last year, and at times even joked about, I haven’t exactly been excited about running for another term. That is true since the choice is between spending another six years navigating the political theatre and partisan gridlock in Washington or spending that time with the love of my life Susan, our two children, three beautiful grandchildren, and the rest of our extended family back home. It’s not a hard choice, and I will not be seeking re-election.

I’m beyond grateful for the friends I’ve made over the years in North Carolina and our nation’s capital, as well as my amazing staff who are among the very best the Senate has to offer.

I still look forward to continuing to serve North Carolina over the next 18 months. I look forward to solely focusing on producing meaningful results without the distraction of raising money or campaigning for another election. I look forward to having the pure freedom to call the balls and strikes as I see fit and representing the great people of North Carolina to the best of my ability.

This comes directly on the heels of President Trump hitting Tillis very hard on TruthSocial:

It appears to me that President Trump knocked this guy right out of office with two posts to TruthSocial.

Incredible!

The list of loser RINOs leaving office is growing, and that’s a beautiful thing:

RETIRING:
– Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE2)
– Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC)
– Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

IN HUGE TROUBLE:
– Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX)…to Ken Paxton

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) June 29, 2025

Reuters confirms the report here:

Republican U.S. Senator Thom Tillis said on Sunday he will not seek reelection next year, a day after President Donald Trump said he would consider supporting challengers to Tillis in response to his vote against the White House’s signature tax-cut bill.

Tillis was one of two Republican senators on Saturday to vote against opening debate on Trump’s sweeping tax-cut and spending bill, a procedural step necessary to advance the legislation.

His North Carolina seat is seen as one of the few competitive Senate races in the 2026 midterm elections, when control of both chambers of Congress will be at stake.

While the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives is considered up for grabs, Democrats face an uphill battle in trying to reclaim a Senate majority. Republicans hold a 53-47 edge, and all but two Republicans up for election – Tillis and Susan Collins in Maine – are in states that Trump carried easily in the 2024 presidential election.

Former U.S. Representative Wiley Nickel is the most prominent Democrat who has announced a run against Tillis, but party leaders have been hoping that former Governor Roy Cooper, who remains popular in the state, will jump into the race.

In a statement, Tillis made no mention of Trump but bemoaned the political gridlock that has gripped Congress.
“In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species,” he said.

Following Tillis’ “no” vote on the tax-cut bill on Saturday, Trump attacked him on social media, saying the senator was making a “big mistake” and vowing to meet with potential Republican challengers in the coming weeks.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport.

View the original article here.

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