NC Sen. Ted Budd voices blunt concerns about Mark Walker nomination

Sen. Ted Budd offered an unusually blunt stance on a former lawmaker and fellow North Carolina Republican after allegations surfaced that Budd was blocking the Senate confirmation hearing of former Rep. Mark Walker to oversee international religious freedom.

Budd told McClatchy in an exclusive interview Wednesday that he’s not blocking President Donald Trump’s nomination of Walker and that he would vote for him if he reached the Senate floor, but he didn’t mince words about concerns he has regarding Walker.

“I do have concerns about him,” Budd said. “I think he has demonstrated, or repeated, problems with honesty. I have concerns about how he’s treated some female staff members.”

Budd wouldn’t elaborate on that statement but said that “you could look at his remarks, too, about the RSC staff and how he referred to them.”

In 2017, Walker referred to a group of female members of the Republican Study Committee as “eye candy.”

“We must become more vocal and visible,” he said of the conservative group of lawmakers, McClatchy reported. “The accomplished men and women of the RSC and women — if it wasn’t sexist, I would say the RSC eye candy; we’ll leave that out of the record — are not attention-seekers. In fact many of them prefer to work behind the scenes in the process of what we call effective conservatism. However, we have no other alternatives to move in a more proactive manner.”

Walker defended himself in an interview with CNN at the time, saying, “During a press event today, I made a flippant remark meant to be light-hearted but fell short. I’m proud of the women who serve in our RSC leadership.”

Walker could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday, though he spoke to McClatchy Tuesday night about his nomination.

Budd added he wants to support President Donald Trump’s nominees. He’s only voted against one of Trump’s nominees since Trump retook office at the beginning of the year, and that was the secretary of labor, but he added he’s been impressed with Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer since.

“If (Mark) ended up on a floor vote, I would vote for him,” Budd said.

The Senate goes on recess Friday, through January, meaning that Walker’s nomination will likely expire without a Senate confirmation hearing, and Trump will either have to renominate him or choose someone else.

Budd’s remarks come less than 24 hours after Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican from Huntersville, told McClatchy that he supports Budd and thinks the Senate needs to move on from Walker’s nomination. Tillis also mentioned concerns about Walker but would not elaborate.

Walker nominated for religious freedom role

In April, Trump nominated Walker for ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom. The position falls under the U.S. Department of State and was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.

Sen. James Risch, a Republican from Idaho, leads the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, which has jurisdiction over Walker’s nomination. He suggested to Breitbart News, who first reported Budd was blocking Walker, that he didn’t believe Walker had enough support.

Walker said in an interview with McClatchy Tuesday night that he has not found a single senator who says they would not support him.

“We have talked to a ton of people, Senate leadership, you name it, across the board,” Walker said. “We feel good about things.”

Budd says Walker putting out ‘narrative’ about him

Budd said the allegation that he’s blocking confirmation doesn’t make any sense. It’s not his style, he said, and he finds the position incredibly important.

“If the religious freedom groups that are coming in the office, are instantly jumping to conclusions, saying I don’t think that religious freedom is important,” Budd said, “religious freedom is tremendously important.”

He pointed to his body of work, just this year. Budd worked to free Israeli hostages, including North Carolina’s Keith Siegel, who was taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, and wasn’t freed until this February.

His religious freedom works also extends to Qatar, Jordan, the Middle East, India, Brazil and Nigeria, among others, he said.

“You look at my work that I’ve done here, two, look at my ... faith in my life,” Budd said. “I mean, look at my training in life, my college ministry experience, my Dallas seminary experience, my church involvement. Look at how I’ve operated for the past, I don’t know, 35 years in my life. It just doesn’t match.”

“So I would hope that those that are supportive of religious freedom, from a nonprofit perspective, would actually look deeper than the narrative that Mark Walker is putting forth.”

Walker told McClatchy Tuesday night that he’s not the one accusing Budd of blocking his vote, to which Budd responded, “I’ll have to take him at his word,” borrowing from a statement Walker made that he would take Budd “at his word” that he’s supportive of the nomination.

A history between Budd and Walker

Budd said Walker has had a “fixation” on him for years and he doesn’t know where it stems from. It started before their 2022 primary against one another, where Budd won with 58.6% of the vote against Walker, who came in third, behind former Gov. Pat McCrory, with 9.2% of the vote

“He was leader of RSC,” Budd said. “I looked to his leadership, and something began to devolve later on. I can’t really put a finger on it.”

Budd said after state lawmakers redrew Walker’s Triad congressional district in 2019 with a tilt toward Democrats, Walker said at one point he was going to run against Budd, then a House member representing a different portion of the Triad.

“I met with him and then I realized soon after that everything that happened in that meeting was distorted,” Budd said. “I think this would have been in 2019, and then he was going to run against Tillis. He was going to run against Patrick McHenry. He was lost and looking for a home, and I just kept my head down and kept working and kept grinding.”

Walker did not run in 2020, deciding instead to focus on the 2022 Senate election in which he faced Budd.

In 2024, he ran in the 6th Congressional District, facing off against now-Rep. Addison McDowell, a Republican from Davie County.

McDowell and Walker would have faced off in a primary runoff that year, but Trump offered Walker a job on his 2024 campaign. Walker ended his own campaign to take the job and then Trump nominated him in April to the ambassadorship.

Asked if Trump has called Budd to discuss Walker’s nomination, Budd said yes. Trump asked Budd to support Walker, he said.

“I am not going to encourage those around here to move on his nomination,” Budd told McClatchy. “But again, I’m not placing any holds.”

But Budd added, Trump couldn’t remember Walker’s name when they spoke.

“He said, that religious guy,” Budd said.

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