Thune: Democrats Draw Up Familiar Play: Obstruction, Division, Distraction
“[U]nfortunately it’s pretty clear that obstructing, not legislating, is Democrats’ priority right now.”
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WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor:
Thune’s remarks below (as delivered):
“Mr. President, before I begin, I want to mention longtime Supreme Court Justice David Souter, who died on Thursday.
“My thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones.
“I also want to mention Cardinal Robert Prevost, who on Thursday became Pope Leo XIV.
“And I want to extend my congratulations on his election and my prayers for his service.
“I know that his election is particularly moving for American Catholics, who for the first time in history will be led by an American-born pope.
“I am very happy for them.
“And I look forward to seeing what this son of the Midwest brings to the Catholic Church, and to the world.
“Mr. President, on Thursday afternoon, Democrats abruptly ended extensive bipartisan work on the GENIUS Act and filibustered the Senate’s attempt to move this bill.
“Democrats, I should say, who had voted for the bill in committee inexplicably chose to vote against it here on the Senate floor.
“Mr. President, that’s pretty difficult to understand.
“Providing a regulatory framework for stablecoins is a bipartisan issue.
“The bill is the product of a bipartisan negotiation.
“And the vote in the Banking Committee was definitely bipartisan.
“Which leads you to wonder, of course, if this was really about the bill at all, or if this was about wanting to deny President Trump, or Republicans more generally, a legislative victory.
“Which might be nice for Democrats, but leaves stablecoin issuers and Americans who use stablecoins in the same difficult spot that they’re currently in.
“But unfortunately it’s pretty clear that obstructing, not legislating, is Democrats’ priority right now.
“Mr. President, until Democrats come to their senses and allow us to proceed to the GENIUS Act, we’re going to turn to nominations – another area, where, unfortunately, Democrats have made obstruction the name of the game.
“I certainly understand that Democrats are not going to support all the president’s nominees – that’s their prerogative as senators.
“But the way that they are drawing out this process on even noncontroversial nominations is serving no one.
“Fifty-seven out of the 58 of the president’s civilian nominees have required cloture votes – an unprecedented number for recent administrations.
“And of those 57 nominees, 17 received 60 or more votes in support on their final confirmation vote – in other words, support from a number of Democrats as well as Republicans.
“And yet Democrats dragged out those nominations in the same way they dragged out the nominations of individuals that they universally opposed.
“Not a single one of President Trump’s civilian nominees has been confirmed by unanimous consent or voice vote – again, something entirely unprecedented in recent years.
“No other president since at least 1977 has failed to have civilian nominees confirmed by unanimous consent or voice vote at this point of his administration – except for President Trump in his first term in office.
“And, as I said, this is serving no one, Mr. President.
“Nor is this going to prevent the president’s nominees from getting confirmed.
“Democrats can drag out nominations all they want, but we’re going to fill out the president’s administration and ensure that his nominees get into place so that … he can do the job that he was elected to do.
“I’d like to do this the easy way, and confirm noncontroversial nominees expeditiously – in batches, for example, and maybe even by unanimous consent.
“That would give us more time to legislate, and give members more time to spend in their states.
“But if we have to do this the hard way, we will.
“We’re going to get the president’s team in place.
“So I guess, Mr. President, Democrats have some decisions to make.
“I hope – I really hope – that they’ll come back to the table on the GENIUS Act.
“And I hope that they will cease their pointless obstruction of bipartisan nominees.
“But I guess we’ll have to see.”
Related Issues: Nominations, Cryptocurrency, Filibuster
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