Sen. Thom Tillis criticized those who have vowed to fund primary challenges against Republican senators who oppose President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet picks, telling Fox News Sunday that they are "political opportunists."
The North Carolina Republican pointed out that "we haven’t even seen the background checks, which I know the administration is sending our way. So, there’s a lot of information that needs to be gathered, and these folks who are making primary challenges, running ads, they seem more like political opportunists than me, than thoughtful members of the Republican Party."
Tillis emphasized that “a lot of these are third parties that are making money from the fundraising campaigns, to put some ads in there but double digit percentages are going into their pockets.”
"Here’s what I would tell them: If they really support President Trump’s nominees they should stand down and let the nominees win on their own merits — and I think most of them will.”
He also warned that pressure campaigns “run a lot of risks,” including that they could backfire on their very purpose of getting nominees through Congress.
The North Carolina senator questioned the intention of such advertisements, but emphasized that he believed they are not coming “directly out of Mar-a-Lago.”
Instead, he said, "it’s coming out of groups, sometimes they have good behavior and other times they’re out there to make some change and get their name out there as an activist organization. I think that’s not doing the president a very good service.”
He added that the nominees need to be prepared to answer difficult or even “unfair” questions, saying "nothing is sacred — family, past experiences, personal experiences, high school yearbooks. The nominees need to get ready and they need to answer these questions to the satisfaction of the Republican members minimally."