By Judi McLeod ——Bio and Archives--February 27, 2019
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North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis’ ‘support’ for President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency at the border is as splintered as a certain part of his anatomy from sitting on the fence.
His both For-Trump but-Against-Him, as laid out in a Washington Post op-ed, is akin to instructing someone to get out there and take down the enemy—but don’t mess him up in the bargain.“Tillis, who is up for re-election in 2020, wrote in an op-ed for The Washington Post that while he favors border security, he is concerned the President has overreached with the national emergency declaration."
"As a U.S. senator, I cannot justify providing the executive with more ways to bypass Congress," he wrote. "As a conservative, I cannot endorse a precedent that I know future left-wing presidents will exploit to advance radical policies that will erode economic and individual freedoms.” (CNN)As a conservative he cannot endorse a precedent that he knows future left-wing presidents will exploit to advance radical policies that will erode economic and individual freedoms?! The vote on Trump’s declaration for a national emergency isn’t somewhere in the nebulous future, it is in the here and now. This is what the wishy-washy Tillis wrote in his Washington Post op-ed:
President Trump has few bigger allies than me when it comes to supporting his vision of 21st-century border security, encompassing a major investment in technology, personnel and infrastructure, including new physical barriers where they will be effective. […]
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From the perspective of the chief executive, I can understand why the president would assert his powers with the emergency declaration to implement his policy agenda. After all, nearly every president in the modern era has similarly pushed the boundaries of presidential power, many with the helping hand of Congress. In fact, if I were the leader of the Constitution’s Article II branch, I would probably declare an emergency and use all the tools at my disposal as well. But I am not. I am a member of the Senate, and I have grave concerns when our institution looks the other way at the expense of weakening Congress’s power. (WaPo)In other words, it would be A-OK for Tillis to declare an emergency were he the leader of the Constitution’s Article 11 branch, but not for President Trump. In addition, President Trump’s goal on the resolution was not made “at the expense of weakening Congress’s power”, he was instead making an effort to try to bolster the safety of American citizens against human and drug trafficking, and any and all of those who commit crimes after crossing the border—illegally. In both his excuses and op-ed, Sen. Thom Tillis sounds like another Democrat. Seemingly convinced that President Trump will be replaced by a “future left-wing president” in 2020, the waffling senator should not be excused for his major cop-out. Instead he should be knocked right off the fence he’s straddling by North Carolina voters when he runs for reelection in 2020.
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