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Thune’s SD SIte
The Leader Board • Remarks
October 1st, 2026

Republicans’ Record of Lower Costs and a Secure Border

Nearly Two Years After Taking Over, the Republican Congress Has Delivered – From Lowering Taxes to Securing the Border to Reducing Costs by Cutting Regulations

FOUR YEARS OF THE BIDEN PRESIDENCY AND DEMOCRAT CONTROL OF THE SENATE BROUGHT THE WORST INFLATION IN 40 YEARS AND THE WORST BORDER CRISIS IN AMERICAN HISTORY

  • Inflation hit a 40-year high under President Biden, affecting everything from groceries, to electricity, to housing. (The Associated Press: US inflation at new 40-year high as price increases spread – 6/10/22)
  • “… [T]he Biden administration and Congressional Democrats made a $1.9 trillion bet in the form of the American Rescue Plan. They lost, as it contributed to a surge in inflation that fueled massive voter discontent and Donald Trump’s return to the White House.” (Axios: Democrats’ $1.9 trillion bet that blew up – 11/10/24)
  • During President Biden’s time in office, costs skyrocketed across the board:
    • All prices rose an average of 20.65%.
    • Grocery prices, measured as “food at home,” increased by 22.32%.
    • Energy prices increased by 30.54%.
    • Electricity prices increased by 28.55%.
    • Natural gas prices increased by 33.30%.
    • Rent prices increased by 24.19%.
    • Car repair and maintenance prices increased by 34.33%. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Consumer Price Index News Release – 2/10/21; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Consumer Price Index News Release – 1/15/25)
  • During President Biden’s tenure, there were 10.5 million migrant encounters along the southwest border, including known gotaways. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection: Southwest Land Border Encounters – accessed 10/1/26; Fox News’ Bill Melugin: post on X – 8/20/24) 
    • Illegal border crossings hit record levels under Biden, averaging 2 million per year from 2021 to 2023. (The Washington Post: Trump vs. Biden on immigration: 12 charts comparing U.S. border security – 2/12/24)
    • Under the Biden administration, there were over 12,600 migrant encounters on a single day, a record for the southern border. (Fox News: Southern border hit by record number of migrant encounters in a single day as thousands flood into Texas – 12/19/23)
    • “After Mr. Biden became president, migrant encounters at the southern border quickly doubled, then kept rising. New arrivals overwhelmed border stations, then border towns, and eventually major cities like New York and Denver.” (The New York Times: How Biden Ignored Warnings and Lost Americans’ Faith in Immigration – 12/7/25)

AMERICANS WANTED A DIFFERENT DIRECTION AND REPUBLICANS TOOK ACTION BY PASSING THE WORKING FAMILIES TAX CUTS

  • By stopping the expiration of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), Republicans’ Working Families Tax Cuts law “prevents a more-than $4 trillion tax hike on American families and workers.” (U.S. Senate Committee on Finance: Working Families Tax Cuts – accessed 10/1/26)
  • If the TCJA had expired, there would have been a “[m]ore-than $2.6 trillion tax hike on households earning less than $400,000 per year” and the standard deduction, “claimed by over 90 percent of taxpayers,” would have been slashed nearly in half. (U.S. Senate Committee on Finance: Working Families Tax Cuts – accessed 10/1/26; Tax Foundation: How 2026 Tax Brackets Would Change if the TCJA Expires – 10/24/24)
  • Instead, under the Working Families Tax Cuts law, Americans saw a meaningful tax cut, an increase to the TCJA’s standard deduction amount, an increased child tax credit, and more:
    • The law increases the standard deduction from TCJA levels by $750 for single filers, $1,125 for heads of household, and $1,500 for married filers; makes these increases permanent; and indexes future increases to inflation so its value never goes down. The child tax credit is also increased by $200 per child, made permanent, and indexed to inflation. (U.S. Senate Committee on Finance: Working Families Tax Cuts – accessed 10/1/26)
    • This past tax season, “[o]ver 127 million filers (90% of all tax filers) have claimed the permanently doubled standard deduction, simplifying tax filing for millions across America.”
    • “97% of filers received a tax cut this past filing season, who would have otherwise owed taxes absent the Working Families Tax Cuts” and “96% of filers receiving a tax cut earned less than $200,000.”
    • “Nearly 40 million families have claimed the enhanced Child Tax Credit, which is permanently doubled and expanded by the Working Families Tax Cuts.” (U.S. Department of the Treasury: A Look at the First-Year Results of the Working Families Tax Cuts – 7/2/26)
  • Republicans also implemented new tax provisions to help everyday Americans get ahead, including no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and an enhanced deduction for seniors:
    • “Over 7.5 million filers have claimed No Tax on Tips, with an average deduction of over $7,000.”
    • “Over 29 million filers have claimed No Tax on Overtime, with an average deduction of over $3,100.”
    • “Over 35 million seniors have claimed the Enhanced Deduction for Seniors, with an average deduction of over $7,500.” (U.S. Department of the Treasury: A Look at the First-Year Results of the Working Families Tax Cuts – 7/2/26)
  • By establishing Trump Accounts, the Working Families Tax Cuts created a new opportunity for young Americans to learn how to invest and grow their money, saving up for their own American dream:
    • Trump Accounts “have attracted a wave of interest from eligible families who want to claim the $1,000 government contribution for children born between 2025 and 2028.”
    • “Parents, relatives, friends and employers may, combined, contribute up to $5,000 per year, which can accelerate your child’s savings long before they start working. Contributions from governments or nonprofits do not count against that limit.” (CNN: How Trump Accounts compare to other savings plans for your child – 6/27/26)

THANKS TO PRESIDENT TRUMP’S LEADERSHIP AND CONGRESSIONAL ACTION, THE SOUTHERN BORDER IS SECURE AND AMERICAN FAMILIES ARE SAFER IN THEIR COMMUNITIES

  • Through August, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “announced 16 consecutive months of zero releases at the border.”
    • “The U.S. Border Patrol’s apprehensions along the southwest border in August were 94% lower than the monthly average of the Biden administration; 97% below the peak of the Biden administration (December 2023); and less than what was apprehended in 5 days in August 2024.” (U.S. Department of Homeland Security: Trump Administration Delivers 16 Straight Months of Zero Releases at the Border – 9/16/26)
  • This achievement was made possible by President Trump’s decisive action and congressional Republicans’ leadership:
    • On his first day in office, President Trump signed an executive order undoing the failed “catch-and-release” policy implemented under the previous two Democrat administrations, now borne out by over a year of zero illegal alien releases into the interior of the country. (White House: Securing Our Borders – 1/20/25; Reuters: Trump signs memo ending ‘catch and release’ immigration policy – 4/6/18; New York Post: Biden reinstates ‘catch and release’ policy at the southern border – 2/11/21; Fox News: Trump hits dramatic milestone in massive departure from Biden border plan: ‘What a difference’ – 5/15/26)
    • Republicans in Congress secured the funding for this border success, having “set aside roughly $170 billion for immigration enforcement and border security efforts” in the Working Families Tax Cuts law, including “$46.5 billion to complete construction of the border wall” and “$4.1 billion to hire additional CBP personnel, including 3,000 more customs officers and 3,000 new Border Patrol agents.” (CBS News: Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” gives ICE unprecedented funds to ramp up mass deportation campaign – 7/10/25; U.S. Department of Homeland Security: Secretary Noem Commends President Trump and One Big Beautiful Bill Signing into Law: Historic Win for the American People and the Rule of Law – 7/4/25)
    • Every single Senate Democrat voted against the Working Families Tax Cuts law, including its transformational border security funding. (H.R. 1: Roll Call Vote #372 – 7/1/25)
    • Then, to end Democrats’ historic 76-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, congressional Republicans passed the Secure America Act, “a roughly $70 billion package to fund ICE and the Border Patrol through the end of President Donald Trump’s term.” (NBC News: Republicans pass bill to fund ICE and Border Patrol through the end of Trump’s term – 6/9/26; U.S. Congress: S. 2 – Secure America Act – accessed 10/1/26)

TO REDUCE THE COST OF LIVING, THE REPUBLICAN CONGRESS HAS SPENT NEARLY TWO YEARS CUTTING BURDENSOME REGULATIONS AND RECKLESS SPENDING

  • “According to the aggregated collection of self-reported estimates from federal agencies, the cumulative total of regulatory costs under the Biden Administration added up to more than $1.8 trillion – far exceeding any preceding administration on record.” (American Action Forum: The Biden Regulatory Record – 1/29/25)
  • To reverse this unprecedented regulatory burden, Senate Republicans have passed 25 Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions of disapproval to undo harmful energy, environmental, and public lands rules – including the repeal of the California electric vehicle (EV) mandate. Of these, 23 have become law. (American Action Forum: Congressional Review Act Tracker for the 119th Congress – accessed 10/1/26)
  • “Excessive regulations are contributing to the housing affordability crisis. On average, regulations imposed by government at all levels account for nearly 25% of the price of building a single-family home and more than 40% of the cost of a typical multifamily development.” (National Association of Home Builders: Federal Regulatory Reform – accessed 10/1/26)
  • To tackle the rising cost of housing, the Senate passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act to lower costs by expanding the supply of all types of housing through reducing onerous and unnecessary regulations to new home building while protecting taxpayers from increased government spending. (U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act – accessed 10/1/26; H.R. 6644:Roll Call Vote #182 – 6/22/26)
  • The Senate also passed a rescissions package last year cutting $9 billion of wasteful spending, the first to be signed into law in 30 years. (The Wall Street Journal: Congress Approves Trump’s Plan Clawing Back Foreign Aid, Public Media Funding – 7/18/25)
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