Thom Tillis says he has not seen the bill and that Republicans are not discussing the issue
Thom TillisUnited States Senator for North Carolina, responding to questions from Axios
Asked by Axios for his position on Hawley's bill, Senator Thom Tillis said he had not seen it. Asked whether Republicans were talking about the issue in general, he answered no.
“No.”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Should Congress ban the abortion pill, mifepristone, as Josh Hawley has proposed?
On March 11, 2026, Senator Josh Hawley introduced the Safeguarding Women from Chemical Abortion Act, which would withdraw the Food and Drug Administration's approval of mifepristone for pregnancy termination, make distributing and labeling the drug for that purpose violations of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, and let women who say chemical abortion harmed them sue its manufacturers. Mifepristone has been approved in the United States since 2000 and is used in a large majority of American abortions. Hawley argues a national ban is the only remedy because the drug can be mailed into states whose own laws restrict abortion. The bill drew seven Republican cosponsors but has not moved out of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. On September 16, 2026, Hawley unveiled a four-page "Declaration for Life" and began asking officeholders and candidates to sign it as a commitment to ban the drug. The dispute is over whether Congress should enact that ban.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
The fullest available account of Senate Republican reluctance on the bill, with direct responses from Husted and Tillis, Hawley's reply to Axios, and Marjorie Dannenfelser's criticism of the Trump administration's handling of mifepristone litigation.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Axios reported that additional abortion restrictions could cost Republicans support in competitive races, and asked senators, including Tillis and Jon Husted, for their positions on the bill.
After the quotation
Senator Jon Husted, who faced a competitive reelection race, gave Axios the same answer about the bill; his response is recorded separately, though the report paraphrases rather than quotes him.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Tillis withholds a position on the bill and then closes down the broader subject, which is a refusal rather than a substantive response. The closest competing label is a finding that this is not a position event at all, since not having read a bill can be a simple statement of fact. That loses because the exchange was an express request for his position and he declined it twice, the second time foreclosing discussion of the issue itself.
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- People and groups discussed
- Josh Hawley
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Tony Perkins says the Republican Party has "lost its voice" on abortion and credits Hawley with filling the vacuum
“Unfortunately the Republican Party has lost its voice on the life issue and in that vacuum there are leaders that are stepping forward like Sen. Hawley calling upon the church, communities and the country to step up on behalf of the unborn.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Thom Tillis says he has not seen the bill and that Republicans are not discussing the issue". First published: 2026-09-18. Last updated: 2026-09-25. https://disputeindex.com/events/1039-asked-by-axios-for-his-position-on-hawley