Retiring senator 'sassing' Trump admin in belief tide turning against president: analysis

Thom Tillis is standing up against President Donald Trump's administration as he believes he will be rewarded in the future for his opposition, political observers believe.

Tillis, who is not seeking re-election to his post as North Carolina's Republican senator, is said to be standing against the Trump storm and MAGA faithful. Frank Bruni, writing in the New York Times, claimed Tillis' position is carefully placed after years of backing the president.

The change has been dubbed a "glorious spectacle" that sees Tillis distance himself from the admin — but not so much against Trump himself.

Bruni wrote, "Tillis seems intent on making his complaints about the Trump administration's errors and overreach as memorable as possible. He also seems to be having a blast. He's sassing. He's smiling. The liberation of conscience does wonders for a man.

"Partial liberation, I should say. Even now, Tillis focuses most of his pique on the people around President Trump rather than the president himself, who's the victim, in Tillis's telling, of 'bad advice.'"

Part of Tillis' change of heart could be that he is not seeking re-election. Bruni wrote. "He’s in the final year of his second term and not running for re-election, so he needn’t worry about some ultra-MAGA hellion taking him on in a primary and getting Trump’s endorsement."

Despite the change of heart from Tillis, who has "reconnected with a past version of himself, the spirited maverick who found common cause with Democrats," there is still a sense that the North Carolina senator is preserving himself politically.

Bruni added, "I’ve heard some political observers speculate that Tillis is selfishly looking ahead to a post-Trump era when Republicans who raised alarms about the president’s policies and conduct will be rewarded for that or at least judged more kindly by history. Maybe so."

This does not vindicate Tillis, Bruni argued, of his involvement with the administration. He wrote, "He also bears some responsibility for all the damage the Trump administration has done.

"He voted to confirm Noem, Gabbard, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Kash Patel and, most notoriously, Pete Hegseth, whose bid to become defense secretary Tillis reportedly tried to scuttle until Trump made the magnitude of his displeasure with that clear."