{"id":165,"date":"2026-06-03T21:12:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T21:12:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165"},"modified":"2026-06-03T21:12:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T21:12:09","slug":"cornyn-tillis-could-create-wild-card-situation-on-judiciary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165","title":{"rendered":"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Sen. John Cornyn\u2019s loss to Trump-backed Ken Paxton in a primary last week means the Senate Judiciary Committee will have two Republican members who may feel less obligated to stick with President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

Read more Bessent stays mum on \u2018anti-weaponization\u2019 fund at hearing<\/a><\/p>\n

Cornyn, R-Texas, joins Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., as Judiciary Committee members no longer facing reelection. Tillis announced his retirement last year after opposing Trump\u2019s first reconciliation law.<\/p>\n

The committee presides over some of the most intense, highly partisan matters that Congress faces in the modern era, as well as processing judicial nominations and Justice Department officials. The current 12-10 partisan split allows one Republican defection to deadlock the panel.<\/p>\n

A second potential defection \u201copens up even more of a wild card situation,\u201d said Gregg Nunziata, former policy counsel to the Senate Republican Policy Committee and former general counsel and domestic policy adviser to then-Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019re about to see something we haven\u2019t seen in a generation, which is an unpredictable Judiciary Committee,\u201d said Nunziata, now executive director for the Society for the Rule of Law.<\/p>\n

The change in dynamic comes as the Justice Department is lacking a Senate-confirmed attorney general, as well as an assistant attorney general for antitrust and 20 federal judicial vacancies that currently do not have nominees.<\/p>\n

Plus, there\u2019s the prospect of a Supreme Court vacancy if a justice were to retire at the conclusion of the current term at the end of June.<\/p>\n

Lee Holmes, a former Senate Judiciary Committee chief counsel and staff director for then-Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Cornyn and Tillis are \u201ccommitted conservatives\u201d and can be expected to largely back the administration\u2019s picks for judicial spots.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat will be more interesting is whether the administration puts forth an Attorney General nominee and to a lesser extent an AAG Antitrust nominee in the waning days of this Congress. An Attorney General that satisfies Cornyn, Tillis, and the President might be hard to find,\u201d Holmes said in an email.<\/p>\n

Holmes said the Republican Party generally finds ways to come together for the important things, such as a Supreme Court vacancy.<\/p>\n

\u201cCornyn and Tillis might have outsized influence on who the nominee is, but they will want to get a nominee confirmed,\u201d Holmes said. \u201cCornyn and Tillis will have a life after the Senate, and it won\u2019t be as a Democrat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nunziata said he doesn\u2019t see \u201chow the president can nominate anybody who would meet his requisites to serve as Attorney General and get through this Judiciary Committee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Case-by-case<\/h2>\n

Cornyn, addressing reporters Tuesday, said he doesn\u2019t see a change in how he approaches his work in the committee or the Senate more broadly.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I intend to try to be as constructive and productive as I always have, but I\u2019ll be making decisions on a case-by-case basis,\u201d Cornyn said.<\/p>\n

The next question brought up such a case: Trump\u2019s pick to be acting director of national intelligence, Bill Pulte, who is director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Cornyn sits on the Senate Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which would handle Pulte\u2019s nomination.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see no evidence of any qualifications for that job,\u201d Cornyn said.<\/p>\n

Tillis said Tuesday the growing caucus of lame-duck senators \u2014 including Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., who lost a primary after Trump backed another candidate \u2014 \u201ccreates a little bit of uncertainty\u201d as any one of them can effectively veto committee work.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be fair, I think Cassidy, Cornyn, and I want the president to succeed. But you have more latitude in taking exception to what they\u2019re doing without the trappings of a campaign hanging over your head. So that could change the dynamic, yeah,\u201d Tillis said.<\/p>\n

Read more Senators urge quick action to halt college sports decay<\/a><\/p>\n

Tillis said their situation also may make the administration take the advice-and-consent role of the Senate for nominees more seriously.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe whole concept of advice and consent is to talk about the ones in the pipeline ahead of time, so you got a better idea of who can get confirmed, where the coalition of votes would come from, and all that,\u201d Tillis said. \u201cI think if the admin engages members like me and Cornyn, it could go very well. And if they don\u2019t, it may not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., a member of the Judiciary Committee, said last month that Trump\u2019s endorsement of primary challengers in his party \u201ccreates both political openings for us and real grievance in the other caucus about how Trump\u2019s political malpractice is costing them seats.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coons pointed to Democratic Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff of Georgia as examples of how Trump\u2019s electoral meddling could help Democrats.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t think we\u2019d have two Democratic senators from Georgia in my lifetime, but they\u2019re both great senators, my two Democratic colleagues, and it was the direct result of President Trump\u2019s engagement in those campaigns,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Coons said that with Cornyn\u2019s loss in the primary, Trump may see a different relationship with Congress.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s important that the White House learn that they need to consult with Congress and work with Congress, and some of the lessons of the last 15 months, where they haven\u2019t, are going to come home to roost for them,\u201d Coons said.<\/p>\n

Last month, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., acknowledged that Trump\u2019s endorsement of Paxton and a challenger to Cassidy put the party in a rough position.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, there\u2019s always a consequence associated with taking on incumbent United States senators,\u201d Thune told reporters.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe obviously has his favorites and people he wants to endorse, and that\u2019s his prerogative, but what we have to deal with up here is moving an agenda,\u201d Thune said. \u201cObviously, that can become slightly more complicated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stepping out<\/h2>\n

Nunziata said that if both Cornyn and Tillis sided with Democrats on the Judiciary Committee they could vote to advance oversight measures, such as subpoenas, over the objections of Chairman Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa.<\/p>\n

Tillis himself demonstrated that power earlier this year on the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. He threatened to block any nominees to the Federal Reserve after the Justice Department opened an investigation into Fed Chairman Jerome Powell\u2019s oversight of renovations on the central bank\u2019s headquarters.<\/p>\n

The Senate only proceeded with confirming Powell\u2019s replacement, Kevin Warsh, after the DOJ publicly dropped its investigation into Powell.<\/p>\n

Casey Burgat, legislative affairs program director and associate professor at George Washington University, said senators will be aware of that leverage.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen with Tillis and others that when their name\u2019s not on the ballot, they have a different incentive structure. The party loyalty is less of a factor, and it\u2019s more that a conscience vote starts coming out,\u201d Burgat said.<\/p>\n

Read more Cornyn\u2019s loss proves election rules still apply<\/a><\/p>\n

Savannah Behrmann contributed to this report.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sen. John Cornyn\u2019s loss to Trump-backed Ken Paxton in a primary last week means the Senate Judiciary Committee will have two Republican members who may feel less obligated to stick with President Donald Trump. Cornyn, R-Texas, joins Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., as Judiciary Committee members no longer facing reelection. Tillis announced his retirement last year […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":164,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-congress"],"yoast_head":"\nCornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary - American Industry Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary - American Industry Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Sen. John Cornyn\u2019s loss to Trump-backed Ken Paxton in a primary last week means the Senate Judiciary Committee will have two Republican members who may feel less obligated to stick with President Donald Trump. Cornyn, R-Texas, joins Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., as Judiciary Committee members no longer facing reelection. Tillis announced his retirement last year […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"American Industry Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-03T21:12:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\"},\"headline\":\"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-03T21:12:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165\"},\"wordCount\":1173,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Congress\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165\",\"name\":\"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary - American Industry Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-03T21:12:09+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg\",\"width\":1620,\"height\":1080,\"caption\":\"UNITED STATES - MAY 20: Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., seated, attend the Senate Budget Committee markup of \u201cThe Reconciliation Bill Pursuant to S.Con.Res.33,\u201d in Dirksen building on Wednesday, May 20, 2026. President Donald Trump endorsed Cornyn\u2019s opponent Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate primary. (Tom Williams\\\/CQ Roll Call)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=165#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"American Industry Review\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary - American Industry Review","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary - American Industry Review","og_description":"Sen. John Cornyn\u2019s loss to Trump-backed Ken Paxton in a primary last week means the Senate Judiciary Committee will have two Republican members who may feel less obligated to stick with President Donald Trump. Cornyn, R-Texas, joins Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., as Judiciary Committee members no longer facing reelection. Tillis announced his retirement last year […]","og_url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165","og_site_name":"American Industry Review","article_published_time":"2026-06-03T21:12:09+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd"},"headline":"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary","datePublished":"2026-06-03T21:12:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165"},"wordCount":1173,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg","articleSection":["Congress"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165","name":"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary - American Industry Review","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-03T21:12:09+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ea82180687b8bd7a78d477925c793d9d.jpg","width":1620,"height":1080,"caption":"UNITED STATES - MAY 20: Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., seated, attend the Senate Budget Committee markup of \u201cThe Reconciliation Bill Pursuant to S.Con.Res.33,\u201d in Dirksen building on Wednesday, May 20, 2026. President Donald Trump endorsed Cornyn\u2019s opponent Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate primary. (Tom Williams\/CQ Roll Call)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=165#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Cornyn, Tillis could create ‘wild card situation’ on Judiciary"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/","name":"American Industry Review","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/americanindustryreview.com"],"url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}