Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said President Donald Trump made a “colossal mistake” by not supporting Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) in his primary race.
Tillis said, “We’ve got to focus on Ohio. But we’ve also got to focus on some of these states that are popping up as competitive. Texas, for example. That to me is an unforced error created by the president. Now the president needs to invest in there to make sure Paxton wins. ”
Anchor Jake Tapper said, “You bring up the Paxton race. He lost a primary to John Cornyn, who I think a lot of people think would have been cruising to reelection at this point. And so now Republicans have to spend tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars in both North Carolina and Texas. These are states where President Trump antagonized the incumbent Republicans, who probably would have both cruised to reelection. You and Cornyn. What does it say about President Trump that he seemed more invested in in attacking you and Cornyn for various reasons, having to do with disloyalty, in his view, instead of prioritizing Republicans holding on to the Senate?”
Tillis said, “Well, to be fair to the president, he didn’t force me out. I was already moving in that direction. He just gave me a good opportunity to announce my retirement. In the case of Cornyn, he made a colossal mistake. John Cornyn is a great member of the U.S. Senate. Paxton has his challenges. We would not be spending tens or hundreds of millions of dollars in Texas if Cornyn had won. At this point, look, this party has evolved to a point to where 1 or 2 disagreements with the president, Cornyn’s a classic example, voting with the president over 98, 99% of the time. Folks, now is not the time for these loyalty oaths. Now is the time for Republicans to get elected.”
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