John Thune Takes Victory Lap Of Republicans' Successes As Senate Approaches 100 Days Of GOP Control

4 days ago

During remarks on the Senate floor Thursday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) recapped Republicans' successes as the Senate approaches 100 days of GOP control.

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Transcript

00:00Mr. President, Saturday will mark 100 days of the 119th Congress, and the Republican

00:05majority here in the Senate, and it's been a very productive 100 days.

00:09We've had 14 weeks of the new Congress, and the Senate's been in session and voting for

00:1313 of those 14 weeks.

00:15We had the longest continuous in-session work period in 15 years, 10 weeks.

00:21And yesterday, we took our 200th vote.

00:25That's more votes at this point in a new Congress since at least the Reagan era.

00:33And what do we have to show for it?

00:35Well, Mr. President, we've confirmed the President's Cabinet at the fastest pace in more than 20

00:39years, and as of this week, we have more than 50 total confirmations.

00:46Confirming nominees is a big focus of any new Congress with a newly elected President, and

00:51we're building out the President's administration at a brisk pace.

00:55But that's far from the only thing we've done.

00:57We passed Senator Britt's Lake and Riley Act, the first bipartisan border bill since 2006,

01:04which the President signed into law on January the 29th.

01:07This legislation, which incorporated amendments by Senators Cornyn, Ernst, and Budd, ensures

01:13that illegal immigrants who steal, assault a law enforcement officer, or kill, or seriously

01:19injure another person or detained instead of being allowed back on the street.

01:24We also passed Senator Grassley and Senator Cassidy's Halt Fentanyl Act by an even stronger

01:29bipartisan margin to provide law enforcement with critical tools to combat this deadly disease.

01:37And we considered other important bills.

01:40Senator Tuberville's legislation to protect women's sports.

01:43Senator Banks and Senator Langford's legislation to protect babies born alive after botched abortions.

01:48Senator Cotton's ICC sanctions bill, but all of those were unfortunately filibustered

01:53by our Democrat colleagues.

01:56And that's not all.

01:57We've also passed six Congressional Review Act resolutions and plan to pass the seventh

02:02today to repeal burdensome Biden administration regulations, thanks to the efforts of, among

02:08others, Senators Holvin, Cruz, Kennedy, Ricketts, and Tim Scott.

02:13And finally, Mr. President, we've considered not one but two budget resolutions to provide

02:17the framework for a permanent extension of the 2017 tax relief and a transformational investment

02:24in our border, energy, and national security.

02:27And I'm proud of the role the Senate's two resolutions have played in advancing negotiations

02:32as we head toward a final bill.

02:35Mr. President, as I've said before, my philosophy of leadership comes from my dad.

02:40He was a basketball coach at our high school and he had some very strong opinions about

02:44the right way to play.

02:46Sports to him was not about personal glory, it was about elevating the team.

02:50That's an attitude I've tried to bring to every leadership position I've held.

02:54And when Republican senators trusted me with the role of majority leader last November,

02:58I promised to empower my colleagues and to open up the Senate.

03:01And I'm proud that we've been making progress toward that goal.

03:05We've honored the commitment to return to regular order and have brought multiple bills

03:09to the floor via the committee process where members of both parties have a chance to amend

03:15and improve legislation.

03:18We've created additional opportunities for members to draw attention to their priorities

03:22and manage their bills on the floor.

03:25And we've done substantial work to cut down vote times to make the process more efficient

03:30and free members up for the other work that they have to do.

03:33I've also been working to ensure that the lines of communication are open at all levels.

03:38At the member level, at the staff level, between the House and the Senate, and between the

03:44Senate and the White House.

03:45I regularly chat with the President, with Speaker Johnson, so that we can ensure that House,

03:50Senate and White House are all on the same page and doing everything we can to advance

03:54our shared goals.

03:56When we return from Easter, we will continue to have a packed agenda.

04:01More nominations to confirm.

04:04More burdensome Biden regulations to repeal.

04:07A tax bill.

04:08And border, energy, and national security bill to continue drafting.

04:14Committees are currently working on legislation that will come to the floor in the coming weeks

04:17and months.

04:18And of course, appropriations season is almost upon us.

04:23And I remain committed to considering as many appropriations bills as possible under

04:27regular order.

04:28When the Appropriations Committee reports a bill, I intend to bring that bill to the floor

04:34for debate.

04:35Ms. President, that will require cooperation from Democrats.

04:40But I hope, I truly hope, that my Democrat colleagues will recognize that the right way to

04:47fund the government is to bring individual appropriation bills through the committee process and then consider

04:52them on the Senate floor.

04:55Ms. President, it's been a busy 100 days in the United States Senate.

05:00And I'm looking forward to many more.

05:02Ms. President, I yield the floor.

05:08And I suggest the absence of a quorum.

John Thune Takes Victory Lap Of Republicans' Successes As Senate Approaches 100 Days Of GOP Control

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