Tillis Targets Trump Advisers, MAGA Figures In Upcoming Book

By Theresa Opeka
Carolina Journal

With little more than five months left to go before he leaves Congress, US Sen. Thom Tillis, R-NC, has a book coming out that promises to give his views on his time in Washington, the Trump administration, and those he calls “MAGATS.”

“How to Lose Friends and Antagonize Presidents,” a play on “How to Win Friends and Influence People,” is being released in October. Publisher HarperCollins calls it a “sharp, no-BS book” takes a look at the “sycophants surrounding President Trump, spineless Republican yes-men (and -women), and the weirdos of the MAGA world.”

Tillis, who announced in June 2025 that he would not seek re-election after a public condemnation from President Donald Trump, takes swipes at US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth; Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.; Kristi Noem, former Homeland Security secretary; and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, who are all pictured on the cover of the book, and all of which he confirmed.

HarperCollins says the book gives an inside look at the Senate that “that too often behaves like a group of teenagers in a bad parody of a horror movie — heading straight toward the chainsaws instead of a nearby getaway car.”

During a recent interview with MS NOW’s Morning Joe, he said that he is out to “expose those who “are not giving the president honest advice and putting us in positions that we could avoid.”

Tillis added, “I’m talking about people who have never worked a day in the business, who now have business strategy, decision-making roles, and they’re simply not looking around corners and taking care of this president.”

When asked if the president deserved any blame for what has happened, he compared Trump to a CEO who doesn’t have “expertise in all manner of an organization.”

Tillis decided to call it quits in Congress after 11 years after Trump announced via social media on June 28, 2025, that he may support a primary challenger to Tillis in the 2026 Senate race. The move came after Tillis opposed advancing Trump’s high-profile legislative proposal — the “One Big Beautiful Bill” — in a narrowly divided US Senate vote.

In posts on Truth Social, Trump blasted Tillis for what he called a “BIG MISTAKE,” saying, “Numerous people have come forward wanting to run in the Primary against ‘Senator Thom’ Tillis. I will be meeting with them over the coming weeks looking for someone to properly represent the Great People of North Carolina.” In several posts, Trump accused Tillis of grandstanding and being “missing in action.”

A day later, the senator announced that he would not be seeking re-election.

“It has been a blessing to go on a journey from living in a trailer park and making minimum wage as a young man to having the honor of serving as U.S. Senator for North Carolina,” he said. “I am proud of my career in public service, including hard-fought victories like passing historic tax reform as North Carolina Speaker; and working in the Senate to help pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and confirm three conservative Supreme Court justices and counting.”

The announcement eventually opened the door for a showdown between former chairman of Republican National Committee, Michael Whatley, and former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.

Multiple polls, including Carolina Journal’s, show Cooper with a sizable lead over Whatley. In the latest CJ poll, Cooper leads Whatley 52% to 39%, an advantage that has grown steadily from the 8-point margin Cooper held in Carolina Journal’s March post-primary survey and an 11-point edge in May. Five percent of voters said they would choose a different candidate, while 5% remain undecided.

The Tillis Legacy in North Carolina Politics
Tillis has been a fixture in North Carolina politics for nearly two decades. He joined the General Assembly in 2007 as a state representative from Mecklenburg County and quickly climbed the ranks to become speaker of the North Carolina House in 2011. His tenure was marked by an aggressive conservative agenda that included tax reform and regulatory rollbacks.

In 2014, Tillis won a hard-fought Senate race against incumbent Democrat Kay Hagan. He narrowly won re-election in 2020, defeating Democrat Cal Cunningham in one of the most expensive and closely watched Senate races in the nation that year.

Despite these victories, Tillis has faced ongoing friction with the GOP’s right flank. In 2023, the North Carolina Republican Party formally censured him, signaling the internal challenges he would face in defending his seat in 2026.

Tillis said he is speaking out with his new book because he wants to help Republicans win in the general election.

“I want Republicans to win in November. That’s why I’m speaking out,” said Tillis. “I’m here for the American people, not to score points with Stephen Miller, Pete Hegseth or these other folks who I think are giving the president bad advice.”

His book is scheduled to be released on Oct. 6, less than a month from the Nov. 3 election.

Theresa Opeka is the Executive Branch reporter for the Carolina Journal.