Sen. Thom Tillis (R., N.C.) has played a critical role in confirming many of President Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees — a stark contrast from his primary challenger Andy Nilsson, a long-time critic of the president and his agenda.
Top Republicans are worried that Nilsson’s opposition to Trump could backfire, they told the Washington Reporter.
Nilsson has a history of quitting the GOP over his anti-Trump position, per one of his Facebook posts obtained by the Reporter — including in 2022, when he quit after failing to stop the takeover of the GOP by “we Trumpists.”
“As a coach I know when I’ve been beaten,” he wrote. “Trumpists have won the battle for the Republican Party. It’s theirs now. I won’t stay in it to help them, though.”
During Trump’s first term, Nilsson — who lost a bid for North Carolina lieutenant governor in 2000 — said that “our president is not upholding the ideals of our party and our country.”
In 2015, Nilsson rejoined the GOP “to add [his]voice and vote to deny Donald Trump the party’s nomination.” Nilsson wrote in 2023 that he was “far from” a Trump supporter.
Nilsson also attempted a rival convention to foil the Republican National Convention in 2020. “I’m doing all I can do to preserve the Reagan-Bush legacy of the Republican Party against the Trump takeover,” he said.
In contrast with Tillis’s efforts to advance the confirmation process, Nilsson attacked Trump’s conduct during Robert Mueller’s investigation into the former president.
“I have been most appalled by the president’s mishandling of foreign policy matters — especially the Ukraine situation — and his conduct during the Mueller investigation,” he said at the time. “His power must be checked by other Republicans. Congress must do its duty to bring forth all of the evidence so the country can move forward. We cannot repeat Watergate. It will set Republicans back 50 years.”