Tillis: Strongly Agree
Tillis: Strongly Agree
A: During my time in the Senate, I've broken with Republican leadership and voted against budgets that I felt spent too much money and I'm prepared to continue to hold the line on spending if I get reelected.
Tillis: Strongly Agree
Hagan says she opposed the constitutional amendment and pointed out Tillis got it on the ballot.
The 30-second spot is mainly biographical.
His commercial doesn't mention that he is in his second term as state House speaker, one of the two most influential legislative positions in the state. Rather, he mentions working as a short-order cook at 15 and the fact he put off college until later in life, eventually rising to become a partner at IBM.
Democrats pounced on the omission of his legislative service in their response to the ad Thursday. "Tillis talks about opportunity, but his record in the General Assembly, on which he has promised he will run, and his policy positions tell a much different story," said a spokeswoman for Hagan.
Thom Tillis: Loosen. Voted in favor of rolling back Dodd-Frank banking regulations. Says the CFPB needs more "oversight from Congress."
Cal Cunningham: Tighten. Early backer of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Address "tax loopholes that benefit corporations and the wealthy."
All four candidates said they oppose Common Core education standards. Brannon said he believe in no federal and state education standards. "Common Core became law under Thom's watch," he said. "[It] destroyed education with the Department of Education."
Tillis said he opposes Common Core and he identified the U.S. Education Department when asked to identify a federal cabinet agency he would eliminate. "We existed for more than a century without one," said Tillis, offering a nuanced explanation. "That's the first department I'd look at...At some point, I'd wonder whether or not it needs to exist in its current form."
"I'm not willing to settle just for a national standard if we think we can set a new standard and a best practice," Tillis said, pivoting to an attack on the federal Education Department as "a bureaucracy of 5,000 people in Washington" who make an average salary of over $100,000.
While criticizing the Education Department is common among Republicans, Tillis was standing next to the younger brother of President George W. Bush, whose signature accomplishments include No Child Left Behind, the sweeping federal education law run by the department.
Bush sensed the need to play down any differences: "We can argue about what to call these things," he said, but maintained that the focus ought to be on ensuring high standards.
A: I introduced bipartisan legislation that gives more loan relief to students during the COVID-19 pandemic in addition to the student relief that I previously voted for in the CARES Act. I recognize that this pandemic has put undue strain on those with student loan debt, and I was proud to work on legislation to reduce the burden for our nation's students.
Thom Tillis: Yes. Supports vouchers for students to attend private schools with government assistance.
Cal Cunningham: No. Supports phasing out school vouchers to pay for private-school tuition.
Tillis: Disagree
"We're all conservatives," Tillis said; "You have conservative choices in this primary." While mostly playing it safe, Tillis staked out a series of positions on the right that could hurt him in the general election: agreeing with the other three candidates on stage that climate change is not an established fact, and opposing a federal minimum wage.
When asked if the mentally ill should be able to own guns, Brannon suggested that people with PTSD and other forms of temporary mental illness should. Tillis responded, "Mr. Brannon just said yes to your question, which I think is irresponsible," he said. "You can't put a gun in the hands of someone who represents a danger to themselves or society. Folks, this is being a practical conservative.
Thom Tillis: Mixed. Previously doubted human role, supported Trump withdrawal from Paris agreement. Now sees climate change as solvable with "responsible market-driven solutions." Supported Trump rule easing emission limits on coal-fired power plants.
Cal Cunningham: Yes. "One of the most urgent issues facing us." Supports efforts to move to 100% renewable energy by 2050, rejoin Paris Agreement and train workers for green jobs.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC): "I applaud the Trump Administration on reaching an agreement with Mexico and Canada to replace the outdated NAFTA and ensure our alliances with our neighbors remain strong."
Tillis: Strongly Disagree
Tillis: Strongly Disagree
"Republicans should do everything in our power to undo it. That means using every tool available to us including this CR fight," he said in a statement to The Hill.
GOP operatives say there's little downside for candidates to embrace the "defund" movement--especially those who are facing primary opponents. "There is no downside to coming out against defunding ObamaCare if you're a Senate candidate," said one longtime GOP strategist. For Senate candidates who aren't already in Congress, especially, there's little political danger, he says.
The Senate Majority PAC is spending $750,000 on a 30-second spot defending Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan on the federal health care while attacking Tillis The ad will run statewide for two weeks, PAC officials said. It's the second pro-Hagan ad they've run in N.C., spending near $400,000 in November.
In the new ad, they defend Hagan's support of the Affordable Care Act, without ever referring to the act or its commonly known name, ObamaCare. Instead, they tout her support of legislation that "forced insurance companies to cover cancer and other pre-existing conditions." Tillis, it says, "sides with insurance companies." It's a reference to Tillis' opposition to the health care law.
Tillis' campaign put a message on Twitter saying: "It is a badge of honor to be attacked by Harry Reid--I'll work night and day to beat Kay Hagan and overthrow Reid's majority."
An ad by Thom Tillis blasts Hagan's support of the Affordable Care Act. The ad launches next week with a $300,000 buy.
In his ad, Tillis calls the health law "a disaster." Tillis says, "And the president won't admit it. Kay Hagan enabled President Obama's worst ideas. She refuses to clean up his mess. So you and I have to clean up hers."
A Hagan spokeswoman said Tillis shares the blame for higher premiums, citing some health care experts who have said the state's decision--supported by Tillis--not to run its own health care exchange has resulted in less competition and generally higher premiums. Though Hagan supports ObamaCare, she has co-sponsored a bill that would allow people to keep their current policy.
Tillis: Strongly Disagree
Question topic: The Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) should be repealed by Congress.
Tillis: Strongly Agree
Tillis: Strongly Agree
Tillis: Strongly Agree
On that count, Hagan agreed, saying the president "should not take" action to ease deportations. But she also defended her vote in favor of the comprehensive immigration bill that passed the Senate last June, noting its variety of Republican co-sponsors and saying it would throw considerably more resources at border security. "Inaction is not an option," she said. "Speaker Tillis has no plan to solve our immigration system."
Jeb Bush supports a pathway to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants and complained that not addressing the immigration system had "done us harm economically." He said, "If it was framed in that way, I don't think there's a big debate in the Republican Party about the need to do this."
But an easy resolution is not likely in his party. After a reporter noted that Bush's immigration stance was more "conciliatory," the former governor chuckled and the Republicans in the audience let out a brief, nervous laugh.
On the minimum wage, Brannon said a federal standard is unconstitutional. Tillis responded: "If there's going to be a minimum wage, it's a decision that needs to be made by the states--not the federal government."
Thom Tillis: Yes. Co-sponsored National Right to Work Act. As state speaker of the House, vowed to keep North Carolina "the least unionized state in the United States."
Cal Cunningham: Mixed. Endorsed by major unions. Calls for a "living wage" and defending workplace protections. In 2014 endorsed state's unique "right-to-work laws."
Tillis is one of Gov. Pat McCrory's closest allies and helped engineer majorities in the state House and Senate for the GOP in 2010. McCrory is the state's first Republican governor since 1993.
Democrats and others frustrated by the sharp turn to the right participated in a series of protests dubbed "Moral Mondays" throughout the General Assembly session. Ministers, teachers and other activists participated in the protests, which migrated to Charlotte and other cities.
The Republican is returning to the story of his political roots as he campaigns for the US Senate. "I've only been in office since 2007," he said after filing his candidacy papers last week. "I served for a small time in the town of Cornelius. I was PTA president 8 years ago."
The effort is designed to portray Tillis as the candidate who can deliver results and push back against his label as the establishment candidate. But it also highlights his start in state politics in 2006 when he ousted a conservative lawmaker in a GOP primary, 2-term Republican state Rep. John Rhodes. The Tillis-Rhodes race is seared into the minds of some conservative activists; the the leader of the Charlotte Tea Party, said Tillis' effort to beat Rhodes helped sow "a level of distrust among conservatives."
Tillis aides concede that Hagan has gotten a head start raising money and making her pitch to voters, but said voters would come to respect his life story. Tillis, they said, grew up in a trailer park and is a "self-made man."
"Only one candidate has been telling a story," said a Tillis strategist. "The Thom Tillis story has yet to be told."
Tillis's campaign, meanwhile, has called Hagan a "rubber stamp" for Obama's policies, chiding her for her vote supporting the president's health-care overhaul. The voters' negative feelings toward Obama, Tillis aides say, will help mobilize the Republican base. "North Carolinians are really not happy with the direction our country is going in," Keylin said.
Tillis: Disagree.
Question topic: Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality which permitted our system of limited government.
Tillis: Strongly Agree.
Question topic: Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
Tillis: Catholic.
A: Yes.
Q: What does "separation of church and state" mean to you?
A: I have been outspoken in my defense of our freedom of religion. One example of my commitment to this cause was when Pastor Andrew Brunson was being held in a Turkish prison for practicing his faith and I helped free him and get him returned safely to America.
Q: Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values?
A: I am Catholic, which informs my belief in the dignity of work and that every life is a precious gift from God.
A: Any reforms we make to Social Security need to keep the promises we've already made.
Thom Tillis: Yes. Called the tax cuts "historic tax reform that will lead to bigger paychecks for hard-working Americans."
Cal Cunningham: No. Overwhelmingly benefits "the largest corporations and the ultra-wealthy while leaving middle-class and poor behind."
Hagan's camp fired back, "Speaker Tillis has no position on how to eliminate ISIS and his comments have been called 'waffling' and 'vague.' Kay has been decisive and clear," said a Hagan spokesman.
Tillis had said he didn't know if it was good to arm the Syria groups to hit the airwaves since ISIS became a major campaign issue this month. Tillis was one of the first Republicans to jump on the issue, criticizing Hagan in their first debate over Obama's dismissal of ISIS as the "J.V. team."
Tillis, for his part, demonstrated a surprising fluency on foreign policy matters for a state lawmaker, discussing the roots of the militants fighting in Iraq and Syria and criticizing the president for failing to develop a strategy to combat them. "Kay Hagan has allowed it to happen," he added.
Hagan told Tillis at their second debate he's waffling on what he would do about eliminating the Islamic State militant group. The state House speaker says Hagan allowed President Obama to withdraw troops too quickly from Iraq and created a vacuum.
The "divide and conquer" line seems relevant. Chris Matthews noted: "The goal here politically is to get the sick people to attack the poor people."
Tillis [responded today that he] regrets using the phrase "divide and conquer" in 2011. "The frustration is that we have people that are abusing the system at the expense of us being able to do more for the people who desperately need the safety net," he said. "My point was to say we need to make it very clear, government exists to help those who cannot help themselves. And those who can need to do everything that they possibly can to let us free up those resources so that we can do better things for those who desperately need it."
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The above quotations are from State of North Carolina Politicians: secondary Archives.
Click here for other excerpts from State of North Carolina Politicians: secondary Archives. Click here for other excerpts by Thom Tillis. Click here for a profile of Thom Tillis.
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