HOT: Last week, at an April 22 tele-town hall, Senator Tillis applauded state and local governments, saying they had really “stepped up” and have done “a good job” given the uncertainty.

• Tillis: “On the one hand, I think we’ve seen state and local government step up. They’ve had to take some significant steps with respect to closing nonessential businesses. They’re learning as they go… So I think that on the whole, I believe that the governor and local elected officials have done a good job given all the uncertainty in the response.”

CHASER: Tillis now says – and has doubled down on – that the federal government shouldn’t offer more aid to local governments and that he’s “aligned” with McConnell on pushing them to go “the bankruptcy route.”

• Daily Beast: Tillis Backs McConnell to Halt Funds to Needy States, Even as NC Struggles

LIME: Economists and Governors of both parties are flashing warning signs about Tillis and McConnell’s position, while a Republican Senator says this is not about poorly managed states but instead about “helping to keep police, fire and sanitation in place.”

• Bipartisan National Governors Association (NGA): “These continuing losses will force states and territories not only to make drastic cuts to the programs we depend on to provide economic security, educational opportunities, and public safety, but the national economic recovery will be dramatically hampered.” [Washington Post]

• Former NGA ED: “If we don’t bail out states, they’re all going to cut spending and/or raise taxes. That’s going to make the downturn deeper and longer.” [Washington Post]

• Washington Post: McConnell’s rejection of federal aid for states risks causing a depression, analysts say

• Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy: “This is not about a state which has been mismanaged overpromising pensions and underfunding suddenly finding a way to wiggle out of that obligation. It is about helping to keep police, fire and sanitation in place.” [New York Times]