GOP Sen Thom Tillis reverses support for Pete Hegseth, calls vote 'biggest regret of my career'
WASHINGTON, DC: Republican Senator Thom Tillis sharpened his break with his own party as he reversed his support for Pete Hegseth, calling his confirmation vote for Defense Secretary the “biggest regret” of his career.
The 66-year-old North Carolina Republican, who has increasingly broken with President Donald Trump and members of his administration since announcing his retirement, was among the Republicans who voted to confirm Hegseth as defense secretary in January 2025.
At the time, Tillis sang Hegseth's praises, hailing his military service and saying he looked forward to working with him on Trump's "peace through strength" agenda.
"Pete has a unique perspective as a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and is unquestionably passionate about modernizing our military and supporting the brave patriots like himself who serve our nation," Tillis said before voting to support his confirmation.
Thom Tillis reverses support for Pete Hegseth
Tillis’ support for Hegseth began to unravel soon after his confirmation, with the senator calling him “amateurish” in a July 2025 CNN interview with Jake Tapper over the pause in US weapons shipments to Ukraine and raising questions about his ability to manage the Pentagon.
Nevertheless, he continued to defend his vote for Hegseth.
The major U-turn came in his upcoming book, "How to Lose Friends and Antagonize Presidents," where he defends his decision at the time not to be "the lone voice in the wilderness" preventing Trump's nominees from confirmation.
But Tillis makes clear he was always skeptical of allegations about Hegseth's turbulent management style, treatment of women, and excessive drinking. Hegseth denied all the allegations.
"I know for a fact that there are others like me," Tillis writes, "Republicans who agreed to go along with the early demands of the Trump team no matter how ridiculous they were, believing that failing to do so would mean the end of their political career, and who now see that things have gone way too far."
He also details that at least 30 of his colleagues have "expressed reservations (to put it mildly) about many of the president's actions in private. Then, when the reporters showed up with their cameras and microphones, they'd have nothing but nice things to say."
This came just a few days after Tillis backed an impeachment resolution against Hegseth, telling reporters that “He needs to go, whether it’s impeachment or the most expedient route just the president to replace him would be great.”
Thom Tillis regrets Robert F Kennedy Jr vote
It wasn’t just Hegseth; the memoir also details Tillis’ regret over voting to confirm Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, along with criticism of several other Cabinet officials.
"I guess it's easy to say now, but I'm the one who has to live with that vote and all the havoc Kennedy's tenure has caused the country as a result,” he wrote.
On both votes, he says he didn't want to be the deciding factor.
"I had no intention of letting my colleagues outsource their courage to me while they pretended to go along with the questionable nomination President Trump had put forward," he writes.
He strongly criticizes several of Trump's other initial Cabinet picks in the book, including former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
