North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis has come out strongly against President Trump’s latest move, the creation of a $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization fund” meant to compensate people who claim they were victims of government overreach. The fund was announced by the Department of Justice and has quickly sparked a heated debate within the Republican Party, with Tillis calling it a “slush fund.”
According to Mediaite, Tillis, who announced his retirement from the Senate last year, has been growing more outspoken against Trump’s policies in recent months. His criticism came especially after Trump endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over sitting Sen. John Cornyn in the Texas Senate primary runoff, a move widely seen as a snub to Tillis, who had backed Cornyn.
The “anti-weaponization fund” was created as part of a settlement between the Department of Justice and Trump, in exchange for which he agreed to drop a $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over leaked tax documents. The fund has drawn criticism for its potential to pay Trump’s allies and people charged in connection with the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack, some of whom received pardons from Trump when he returned to office.
Tillis stands firm against the fund, saying it will hurt Republicans before November
Trump lashed out at Tillis on Truth Social on May 22, calling him a “Nitpicker” and a “QUITTER” who “didn’t have the courage” to run for re-election. The president also accused Tillis of being a “RINO”, Republican in name only, who was “screwing the Republican Party” alongside his “RINO friends.”
Tillis fired back directly, posting a list of Trump’s policies that he called “stupid” and “absurd.” He pointed to Trump’s decision to use billions of taxpayer dollars to compensate convicted felons who attacked police, as well as Trump’s support for 50-year mortgages and Elizabeth Warren’s housing bill, both of which Tillis’s advisors had recommended against. Tillis made clear that he had no intention of staying quiet just because he was in his final months in office.
“If opposing these things makes me a RINO, then I gladly accept that nickname,” Tillis wrote, adding that the “stupid stuff” was hurting the Republican Party’s chances in the November midterm elections. His comments drew a mixed response from fellow Republicans, with some agreeing with his frustration and others siding with the president.
Tillis also said the fund was “beyond the pale” and would do nothing to help the party heading into November. “There’s not one positive thing that could be spun out of this between now and November,” he said in a CNN interview, reports The Hill. “This is bad policy, it’s bad timing, and it’s bad politics.” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche pushed back against the criticism, defending the fund and claiming that “people that hurt police get money all the time.”
Sen. Mitch McConnell also weighed in against the fund, calling it “utterly stupid, morally wrong.” Republican primary battles have been heating up across the South, with North Carolina seeing its own dramatic moments, including a razor-thin Republican primary result in North Carolina that came down to just two votes with a recount looming.In a statement, Tillis made clear he is not backing down in his final months in the Senate.
“I’ll have a lot of fun over these next seven months, and if that means opposing some of the president’s policies, then so be it.” Trump has a pattern of using Truth Social to attack political opponents, as seen when he posted a rant mocking dead Iranian leaders while JD Vance was in the middle of peace talks.
Published: May 23, 2026 02:00 pm