Northeast South Dakota News

U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) appeared on Fox News with Sean Hannity to discuss the ongoing government funding debate in Congress. Thune addressed the current continuing resolution, describing it as "clean, it's nonpartisan, it is short-term, it has no gimmicks, we didn't put any partisan riders on it." He emphasized that similar resolutions had been passed 13 times when President Joe Biden was in office and Democrats held the Senate majority.

Thune criticized Democratic lawmakers for adding provisions to the current funding bill. "So now they're having to run away from that record and somehow justify all this stuff they've loaded onto this thing … We're in just a different universe, in a different world right now, but hopefully the American people will hold them accountable. We want to do things in the light of day. We want to be transparent," he said.

He contrasted his approach with that of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), stating, "In the past, the way Schumer did this is they would write these bills in his office behind closed doors – and we're trying to open it up, allow the appropriations process, bring bills to the floor, allow open amendments, and do things the way we ought to do things, which is in the light of day."

Thune also commented on the potential impact of a government shutdown on federal employees. "[Members of the military are] starting to work now without pay … But you're talking about border agents, you're talking about a lot of government employees that are doing important work keeping the country safe, who are now going to be working without getting paid. And that's what they're doing …" He attributed responsibility for these consequences to Democratic lawmakers: "[Democrats are] sacrificing that to … the special interest, far-left, activist base that they have to answer to on their wish list. So, loading it up with a lot of … partisan stuff."

Discussing health care eligibility for noncitizens during budget negotiations, Thune stated: "They are now opening the door again to allowing noncitizens, allowing people that Joe Biden admitted into this country illegally, to be eligible for free health care – either via Medicaid or … the ACA subsidies … To try and extort $1.5 trillion to get a seven-week funding resolution that just keeps the doors open so we can finish our appropriations work tells you the desperate lengths that they are taking right now … I mean … they've lost all rationale when it comes to their hatred for President Trump. They can't see straight, they're blinded by it, and they're willing to do … pretty crazy and stupid things. But that's the world we're now living in."

Thune further accused Democratic leadership of hypocrisy regarding government shutdowns: "I think there are a lot of rank-and-file Democrats, Sean, who are regretting letting Schumer walk them down into this rabbit hole. He is … trying to go through these contortions to justify what he's doing. When you've got all those statements out there, as you point out, from the past, where he talks about,'you can't take the federal government hostage to do all these other things.' I mean, these statements that he's made in the past are pretty revealing … he's completely sold out and held hostage by the far left …

"He's coordinating this entire strategy with lefty organizations like MoveOn.org,and so they've got him boxed in here,and he doesn't really have a way out.But I…think a lot of these rank-and-file Democrats are looking for an off-ramp,and so I'm hoping at some point they'll come to their senses and join us in voting to reopen the government.They shouldn't have gotten themselves in this place in the first place."