Thune Joins The Brian Kilmeade Show on Fox Radio

“[T]his is the biggest spending reduction in history, coupled with these pro-growth economic policies - that’s a recipe, in my view, for a very successful future for our country.”

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WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today joined The Brian Kilmeade Show on Fox Radio.

On strengthening Medicaid:

“[W]e’re not cutting [Medicaid], we’re just slowing the rate of growth. It’s going to increase year-over-year for the next 10 years; it’s just not going to grow at as fast a rate. And what we are doing is doing away with the Biden-era waste, fraud, and abuse that was embedded into that program.

“There are a lot of people today – illegal immigrants, people who aren’t eligible for the program, able-bodied, male adults who should be working – who are benefiting from Medicaid. Medicaid was not intended for that. So this is getting back to its core mission and making sure that serving the population it was designed to serve and reforming and strengthening it in a way that was long overdue from, like I said, many of the failed policies of the Biden administration.”

On budget reconciliation:

“We’re getting suggestions and input and feedback, and we’re continuing to work to try and get to that sweet spot that enables us to get 51 in the Senate, and that will allow us to get to 218 in the House. And we understand on that SALT issue that you mentioned earlier, obviously we have to negotiate that out, and we’ll find a way of getting that done.

“But at the end of the day, failure is not an option. We have to succeed. This is the president’s agenda, this is what he ran on, this is what people voted for. And it’s incumbent on all of us to try, as much as we may not get everything we want in this thing, to keep rowing in the same direction and get a positive outcome for the country.”

On cutting waste, fraud, and abuse:

“[W]hen Democrats have power, they grow government, they increase spending, they get more people dependent upon government programs … Unwinding this stuff isn’t easy, but we have to do it, because the future of the country depends on it. We can’t sustain the kind of debt load that we’re carrying today and expect the future generation to have any kind of hopes or aspirations or dreams that those who’ve come before us have enjoyed.

“[W]e should always look for ways to make government more efficient and effective, and we will be doing that. And if there are ideas that come up … Let’s say we get this thing done, we get it behind us and pass it, it’ll be a huge first step, but there’s a lot more to do, and as long as our focus is getting a leaner, more efficient, more effective federal government that rids the, you know, these programs of the waste, fraud, and abuse that have been embedded in some of them for some time, that’s a win for the American people, and I think that’s what the taxpayers in this country ought to expect.”

On Senate Republicans’ tax priorities:

“I think that the scorekeepers around here, the Congressional Budget Office and others, have been notoriously bad in terms of their record when it comes to making predictions about things like this, and they’re never going to give you credit when you cut taxes. The bias in the scorekeepers here in Washington, D.C., as you would expect in Washington, D.C., … there’s always a bias in the favor of spending.

“What happens when you reduce taxes and you incentivize and increase the incentives for investment is people invest, they make money, and they take those realizations and they pay more taxes, and government revenue goes up. The standard rule of thumb is, for every 1 percent growth in the GDP, in our gross economic product in this country, we get about $3 trillion in additional tax revenue.

“So growth leads to revenue, and these are pro-growth policies, and the CBO is never going to give credit for that. So we are, this is the biggest spending reduction in history, coupled with these pro-growth economic policies – that’s a recipe, in my view, for a very successful future for our country.”

On Iran’s nuclear program:

“I think [Khomeini is] very defiant, very belligerent, and he’s cornered right now. His offensive capability has been dramatically diminished by the Israelis, and I think increasingly he is feeling cornered. So … I’m hoping what that leads to eventually is an acknowledgement and realization that their current strategy isn’t going anywhere, and it’s just going to lead to more death and destruction for his people, and the way to achieve a positive outcome here for his countrymen is to actually come to the table and negotiate a deal that ends their nuclear program, and that’s what the president, President Trump, wants to achieve.

“But we’ll just see how willing [Khomeini] is to do that, but every day, they take more of a beating from the Israeli Defense Forces, and it seems like it’s only a matter of time until they have no choices. But you know, at least right now, I think the president is keeping his options open and prepared to do what it takes to ensure that … Iran never has a nuclear capability.”

On the War Powers Act:

“[T]he Democrats here on Capitol Hill probably have a different view, but that’s grounded in their … Trump derangement syndrome. They want to strip him of all the powers. I think that in this particular case, at least, the president has all the authority he needs. I mean, he’s responding to a time of national crisis where American troops, service members, are very possibly could be in harm’s way under attack, and he has tremendous latitude as the commander-in-chief to respond to circumstances like that.

“So you know, the Tim Kaine resolution is maybe good politics for him and the progressive left in the country, but for most of Americans who are concerned in a safer, stronger, and more prosperous world – and certainly a safer, stronger, and more prosperous America – I think they have a lot of confidence that the president will make the right decision.”

[…]

“There are some … folks who are in the isolationist wing of our party who don’t believe that the U.S. has a role when it comes to what’s happening on the world stage. But we very much have a role, particularly when it comes to Israel, our most trusted ally, certainly in the Middle East, arguably in the world, and we have a vested interest not only in their success and security, but also how closely that’s related to ours.

“It’s been very clear from the outset that Iran sees – and Prime Minister Netanyahu has said this – the only thing standing between Iran and the United States is Israel. So this has enormous security implications for our country and for the world, and the U.S. rightfully has an important leadership role to play in that.”