Outgoing Republican Senator Thom Tillis faulted Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s leadership during a 9 July CNN interview, describing the Pentagon chief as “out of his depth” and calling Hegseth’s recent pause of U.S. weapons shipments to Ukraine “just amateurish.” Tillis said the episode underscored Hegseth’s inability to manage “a large, complex organization” and suggested he would oppose the nomination if the vote were held today. Hegseth last week halted deliveries of Patriot interceptor missiles and other munitions to Kyiv without notifying the White House, according to multiple officials. The White House quickly reversed the decision and insisted President Donald Trump “has full confidence” in his Defense Secretary, but the incident prompted bipartisan criticism on Capitol Hill. Tillis’s remarks are significant because he cast the deciding vote in January, when the Senate confirmed Hegseth 51-50 after Vice President JD Vance broke a tie. The North Carolina senator—who announced in late June that he will retire at the end of his term—said hindsight shows the Armed Services Committee “was a little generous” in its assessment of Hegseth’s managerial abilities. The senator also warned that he will block any remaining Trump nominees who defended the 6 January 2021 attack on the Capitol, underscoring a sharper break with the administration as he serves out his final 18 months in office.