Senate Republicans are ready to begin delivering on President-elect Donald Trump’s historic mandate, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said Wednesday in outlining the Senate’s path ahead.
Thune is just beginning his tenure as Republican leader, but he’s already charting a path far different than his predecessor, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who often sparred with and belittled Trump while Leader.
“The American people gave President Trump and Republicans a mandate,” Thune said in a Wednesday floor speech. “Now the time has come to begin executing on it.”
Thune, who called the illegal immigration crisis “one of the most important issues in this last election,” is teeing up a vote to advance the Laken Riley Act Friday – the first legislative vote the Senate will take under his leadership.
Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia murdered by an illegal immigrant last year, has become a tragic symbol of the failure to secure America’s borders.
“Laken’s murderer not only entered the country illegally, he was arrested twice – twice – in the United States and never deported,” Thune said. The bill bearing her name “would ensure that illegal immigrants are deported when they are arrested – as Laken’s killer was – for crimes like theft and burglary.”
He continued, “And while this bill sounds like a commonsense measure – and it is – Senate Democrats uniformly opposed it last year despite the bill receiving bipartisan support in the House of Representatives. We’ll see what they do when the new Senate majority brings it up for a vote.”
The Laken Riley Act passed the House Tuesday despite opposition from 159 Democrats.
Thune is preparing to move another bill expected to pass in the House in the coming days that would sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) over actions he decries as anti-Israel.
Thune said the Senate will “be taking a vote to support our ally Israel – something my friends across the aisle seem to struggle with from time to time.”
“After the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister and former defense minister in November, I called on the Democrat leader to bring up an ICC sanctions bill that had already passed the House – again with bipartisan support,” Thune said. “The ICC’s rogue actions only enable the terrorists who seek to wipe Israel off the map – and they cannot be allowed to stand unchecked.”
He continued, “In November, I promised that if Leader [Chuck] Schumer wouldn’t bring the ICC sanctions bill to the floor, Republicans would. And we’ll soon fulfill that promise and have a vote to support our ally Israel.”
Thune will schedule another “commonsense” and timely vote in January.
“As thousands of pro-life Americans come to Washington for the 52nd Annual March for Life, we’ll take up the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act,” he said on the floor. “This straightforward bill simply states that a baby born alive after an attempted abortion is entitled to the same protection and medical care that any other newborn baby is entitled to.”
He continued, “This vote will ask Democrats to answer whether a living baby born after an attempted abortion should be provided with medical care or be left to die. It shouldn’t be a hard question.”
The Senate has tasks beyond legislating. They must advise and consent – and confirm – Trump’s many nominees for executive offices.
Thune promised to begin holding confirmation hearings next week.
“We will work to ensure each nominee has a fair process without unnecessary delays or obstruction,” he said. “And we will confirm those nominees swiftly so the Trump-Vance administration can hit the ground running.”
Thune also discussed the budget reconciliation process, a complicated process by which Congress can make policy changes through bypassing the 60-vote threshold for passage of most legislation. Border security, energy, and tax policies are expected to be prioritized in those negotiations, and Thune said all those issues have critical national security components.
“To begin with, the border security policies we expect President Trump to implement will need to be fully funded to maximize their effectiveness,” he said. “Increasing the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and Border Patrol agents, increasing detention space, and providing barriers and technology are just some of the resources needed to secure the border.”
He also touted military investments, saying, “We’re working on investing in improvements to military readiness that will help restore American strength so that we can deter our adversaries and keep the peace.”
One tax priority for Republicans will be “extending the tax relief that Republicans delivered during the first Trump administration,” Thune promised. “These pro-growth policies put more money in Americans’ pockets and helped deliver a strong economy before the pandemic, and we need to extend them to protect our economy – and the American people – from a $4 trillion tax hike next year.”
That’s a lot of work, but Thune says it’s “just the start.”
“We have a lot of work to do,” he acknowledged. “But the American people have chosen the right team to get it done.”
Bradley Jaye is Deputy Political Editor for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter and Instagram @BradleyAJaye.
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2025-01-08 15:19:31
