get how she feels, but what should we know about her candidacy?

Well, I mean, I think, again, she's running away from all her positions.

These candidates that are running in states like South Carolina, Democrat candidates who've held these far-left positions, all of a sudden now are trying to reinvent themselves as some sort of moderate.

They're not.

I mean, these are people who, you know, look at her positions on the trans issues, for example.

I mean, it's pretty clear where she's been in the past, and that's not going away.

And, you know, I always tell people that they're now talking about, I'm going to get there, I'm going to be a... independent voice.

Why is that?

But what should we know about her candidacy?

Well, I mean, I think, again, she's running away from all her positions.

These candidates that are running in states like South Carolina, Democrat candidates who've held these far-left positions, all of a sudden now are trying to reinvent themselves as some sort of moderate.

They're not.

I mean, these are people who, you know, look at her positions on the trans issues, for example.

I mean, it's pretty clear where she's been in the past, and that's not going away.

And, you know, I always tell people that they're now talking about, oh, I'm going to get there, I'm going to be a independent voice.

Why is that?

Tell us a little bit about that process, and has it gotten a lot of pushback from different groups in D.C.?

Well, clearly the Packers aren't crazy about it.

And there are folks on the committee.

It's not an issue that unites everybody.

In fact, it doesn't unite people in this room.

We have livestock organizations here in South Dakota that are opposed to it and some that are for it.

I have a long history with it going back to my days in the house.

Seven, eight, nine, 10

10Well, I agree.

I, Josh, and I think you did a great job last night.

The president, as always, brings incredible amount of energy and passion.

But I think the objective here is to ensure that in, in all these states that we, where we have competitive races, and I, of course I'm focused on the Senate, but House as well, is that the, his voters come out and vote.

Because typically in a midterm election, low propensity voters don't always turn out, and we've gotta have them out there.

And, and in a midterm election, the intensity is always with the party out of power, the enthusiasm is higher.

[laughs]

What are you expecting to hear out

of him? Well, J.D., I think, will be poised to deliver a really strong speech.

I mean, you know, clearly last night the president had terrific energy, as he always does, and passion, which I think really resonates with the people on the convention floor.

And I think J.D. will amplify that.

I mean, I think these are two people who have a tremendous loyalty among base Republicans.

And I think one of the objectives, obviously, with this convention is to motivate and ensure that the – Trump-based voters out there understand what's at stake when it comes to a Republican House, Republican Senate, and keeping those majorities.

The president, when he articulates that, talks about, hey, vote as if I'm on the ballot.

Talk to us about the upcoming Senate agenda here.

What are you expecting to hear out

of him? Well, J.D., I think, will be poised to deliver a really strong speech.

I mean, you know, clearly last night the president had terrific energy, as he always does, and passion, which I think really resonates with the people on the convention floor.

And I think J.D. will amplify that.

I mean, I think these are two people who have a tremendous loyalty among base Republicans.

And I think one of the objectives, obviously, with this convention is to motivate and ensure that the – Trump-based voters out there understand what's at stake when it comes to a Republican House, Republican Senate, and keeping those majorities.

The president, when he articulates that, talks about, hey, vote as if I'm on the ballot.

Talk to us about the upcoming Senate agenda here.

How much money is that going to cost when the Democrats are self-destructing?

Well, it is.

We've got a big commitment there within, of course, the next 60-plus days.

But Mike is running a great campaign, and the Democrats did us a huge favor there by nominating somebody that is so far out of the political mainstream in the country, and certainly in Michigan, that if, you know, well-financed, and Mike can get his message out, and again, further define this guy for the voters in the state, I can't envision a scenario where even Democrats in a state like Michigan are going to say this is an acceptable alternative for our state.

He's got so many radical statements out there, radical positions, and so I feel good about the race, and obviously there are some political headwinds that we're facing this year, but Michigan is a state where we couldn't have a better, on our side, a better candidate who I think is really set up for success and a Democrat candidate that is very, very flawed.

So let's keep running hard, Mike is, and try and get that one across the finish line.

Can you beat that back again?

We can.

Oh, how where are we at in terms of fixing it? Have you seen a plan to fix this?

I think that they are.

I've seen.

Yes, I've seen attempts and and attempts.

the folks over there at the department spelling out how they're going to go about doing this.

But frankly, Brian, it comes down to, I mean, we need procurement reform.

We've needed it for a long time.

How do you explain this? Where do you stand, Senator Thune?

Oh, how where are we at in terms of fixing? Have you seen a plan to fix this?

I think that they are.

I've seen.

Yes, I've seen attempts and and attempts.

the folks over there at the department spelling out how they're going to go about doing this.

But frankly, Brian, it comes down to, I mean, we need procurement reform.

We've needed it for a long time.

How do you explain this? Where do you stand, Senator Thune?

Is it correct to say that there is not a majority of the Republican caucus that supports changing the filibuster?

Yeah, that's correct.

I mean, and there are a lot of Republicans and frankly, you know, the president's argument is the Democrats are going to do it anyway.

And that, you know, I can't I don't know the answer to that.

That's a hypothetical.

Maybe it happens.

Maybe it doesn't.

What do you make of the midterm outlook right

I mean, he lived a real American life.

He did, and it was a, a very hardscrabble background, a very tough background.

And you think of how he managed to take care of his, uh, younger sister, who was nine or so years younger and still a teenager at the time when they lost both parents, and, you know, what he had to do to support her through the years.

And then his rise through, you know, the South Carolina legislature, then in the House of Representatives, and now of course the Senate, um, all the things that he's accomplished through the years.

He was somebody who was a huge difference maker.

If you look at people who, uh, serve causes greater than themselves, you, you...

Lindsey comes to mind, pops up.

You know, who would believe something like that?

How did your friendship start, and what was it like?

I mean, as you know, Dana, you know Lindsey well through the years, too.

There wasn't anybody who was a more, uh, colorful, uh, character, um, more passionate about the work that he was involved with, but always brought a, an energy and a sense of enthusiasm that was contagious to anybody that was around him.

And, you know, in the very first one, I was running in 1996.

He and a couple of other house members at the time came out to South Dakota to campaign for me out there.

Um, I've had him in, in South Dakota here in the last couple of years, a couple different times, and every time he comes, you are, um, you know, you're just reminded of what a unique, uh, gifted and talented individual he was.

And you saw that, um, on display whenever he was talking about an issue he cared passionately about.

How much did that help you as leader?

But then you have to have everybody vote on amendments that would not be favorable to Republicans running for reelection.

Fair to say? fair to say and that's assuming you can win those amendments the fear is and this is a you know they're talking about a 350 billion dollar uh defense commitment which i think most of us are supportive of but a lot of our members are going to require that that be offset or paid for and the paid fours would come out of the finance committee's jurisdiction and once that jurisdiction is open to amendment on the floor that makes every amendment at 51 votes And there would be a lot of Democrat amendments to try and undo what we did last year with the working families tax cuts.

And some of those would likely pass.

And that's the thing I think you have to be prepared for.

And you have to ensure, too, going into this, Brett, that even for the top-line objectives, that you've got 50 votes in the Senate and 218 in the House.

It is always a question of math.

on reconciliation.

But overall, do you think the president has helped or hurt the GOP in maintaining control of Congress?

I don't know if you've weighed in on whether that would be something that, that, that you would be, that you think is necessary at this point.

I, I've heard it suggested, Joe.

Uh, obviously I think there is a high level of frustration at the sanctuary city policies and what they are doing, uh, to a lot of our major cities in this country.

And I think the, uh, Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Mullin, obviously are coming up with ideas that they, they think would help at least incentivize a lot of these cities to start behaving in a way that doesn't give sanctuary to, uh, criminal illegal aliens in this country.

Uh, that's one idea that's out there.

There are a number of them that are out there.

But frankly, I think the sanctuary city policy coupled with defund the police coupled with open borders, these are just Democrat policies right now that are anti-law enforcement, and, uh, and frankly are dangerous with respect to a lot of, uh, America's biggest cities and ensuring that those communities and those streets are safe and secure for people who live there.

C- can, can you just comment on, on all those, uh, all those issues, Senator?

You'd like to win all seven, right?

Correct.

And, you know, obviously we have seats where we're playing some defense, but we're also on offense on a few seats, and we just gotta execute, but it takes a lot of resources to do that.

And, um, you know, clearly, uh, I'm hoping that, uh, donors around the country and, and, uh, the donors in Texas will step up big to make sure that, uh, we have the resources to, to run the race we need to run in the state of Texas.

But we've also gotta keep our eye on a lot of these other places like Maine and, and, uh, North Carolina and Ohio and Iowa and Alaska and then, of course, some pickup opportunities in place-places like Michigan and, and New Hampshire and depending, you know, on Georgia right now where they've got a runoff election going.

But it's gonna be, it's gonna be wide open, Hugh.

I think the Senate is a, um... it's just critical that we keep that majority and when it comes to being able to work with President Trump the last two years of his administration, when it comes to the court, uh, as you know very well and, and cover, uh, extremely well, uh, critical that we have a majority in the United States Senate to continue to confirm conservative constitutionalist judges to the federal bench.

But what do you make of when the president says national security comes first? I agree with that, but do you think the voters will agree with that?

Where go-- where does that stand right now, Leader Thune?

Well, right now, of course, the, this Reconciliation two point O, and as you...

The, the first one we did last year, which did literally a decade of legislating in one bill.

Um, now we're gonna have to fund is, uh, you know, the DHS, both ICE and CBP through a reconciliation bill.

But there is a talk now, 'cause we have a third bullet available to us, um, a third legislative vehicle, of what a, uh, Reconciliation three point O might look like.

And, you know, the House is going through, uh, that process.

We are too, having conversations about, uh, timing and, and what it might include, et cetera.

What, uh, what do you understand her concerns to be about that?

So I'm wondering, has there been enough progress made to say that we can fund the government this weekend? I mean, have you talked to anybody?

anybody?We're gonna find out real soon.

Um, when Tom Co- Holman came up here...

And by the way, Brian, that, that, uh, request for that meeting has been out there literally for weeks.

I mean, um, in the 35 days of this shutdown, from day one the White House has indicated a willingness to sit down with Democrat leadership and try and resolve this and get the government and all these agencies and, and really important functions of our government operating again, and the Democrats have resisted.

I mean, in fact, um, the last White House proposal, the Democrats sat on it for 18 days without responding.

So we're trying to force the issue.

Uh, your thoughts.

So I'm wondering, has there been enough progress made to say that we can fund the government this weekend? I mean, have you talked to anybody?

We're gonna find out real soon.

Um, when Tom Ho- Homan came up here...

And by the way, Brian, that, that, uh, request for that meeting has been out there literally for weeks.

I mean, um, in the thirty-five days of this shutdown, from day one, the White House has indicated a willingness to sit down with Democrat leadership and try and resolve this and get the government and all these agencies and, and really important functions of our government operating again, and the Democrats have resisted.

I mean, in fact, um, the last White House proposal, the Democrats sat on it for eighteen days without responding.

So we're trying to force the issue.

Uh, your thoughts?

This is really nuts in the middle of a war.

It is.

And, you know, it's the second time they've done this to you, and this is especially troubling because we are in the middle.

It's a dangerous world.

We got cyber threats, and the cyber office is located within the Department of Homeland Security, so that's also affected by this appropriation bill.

And it just-- it makes you wonder, um, what is, uh, on their minds.

I mean, I think they, they have become so obsessed with...

Is a supplemental necessary, and if so, can reconciliation be used to move it?

What do you make of that position?

Well, first off, they have to have the House, the Senate, and the White House, um, in order to, to make that actually a workable proposition and, um, and if we do our jobs right, we ought to be able to keep control of the House, Senate, the, and the White House.

But notwithstanding that, um, that is the argument that probably...

That's the argument, frankly, that President Trump makes on a regular basis and is perhaps the hardest one to defend, but I would also say, and this is the view that I think most Senate Republicans share, uh, and, and somebody's described it this way, at some point the Democrats may try to steal the car, but we're not gonna hand them the keys.

And I think, you know, if the Republicans, uh, were to go down that path and enable all the bad stuff the Democrats are gonna do when they get the, the chance to do it, um, that's not something that, uh, we wanna have our fingerprints on.

Now, it's, it's possible that they, the Democrats will do this when they have the majorities, it, and, and, and they may not.

I mean, they tried to do it a couple years ago, and they had a couple of them that, that blocked it, and I think there are Democrats that I've talked to at least who share the view that the filibuster serves an important purpose in the Senate.

I-is that gonna come to an end? What, what are Democrats doing here?

So I'd like to go there and, and ask you where the status is of those talks, what the Democrats are asking for, and whether or not we have creative ask backs.

Well, we do.

I mean, I think there are...

If you kind of put it into three categories, there are things the administration's already doing, which are significant, and there are a lot of the things the Democrats have asked for.

Uh, then there are things you could do through that DHS funding bill that are funding-oriented, that you could, you know, increase or withhold funds into certain categories of the DHS budget.

But then there are the things that I think they want, which are policy changes.

And if they're gonna insist on any kind of policy changes, we're gonna be at the table with ours, too, because I don't think we want- we do not want these negotiations evolving into something that makes it harder to deport and detain dangerous illegal aliens that are in this country.

Any conversation about that on the Hill?

Mm-hmm.

There was just some really, really, um, pieces of that legislation that I felt like, uh, this is, um, this is historic.

And, um, the fact that we were, we were able to wrap it up by July 4th.

Now, we had a good plan in place, and we were systematic in how we went after it from a timing standpoint.

But there are always hiccups along the way, as you guys all know.

Yeah.

And, you know, you, you, she's just calling and trying to ...

And, and sort it all out.

But give a g- you know, give us a peek inside.

Well, I think first off, and I would say 'cause I think the first job we have, and I always tell people, "If you don't get national security right, the rest is conversation." So we really made up for the Biden years when they weren't funding the military.

Um, we- we put money in there to- to build the wall at the border and to- and to close the border, which the president has effectively and successfully done.

Um, but, you know, we needed to make sure that we had not only border wall money, but we had m- personnel for, uh, Border patrol agents, uh, detention facilities, um, all the things that we needed to do that were backed up.

And so when I- I kind of put in the category of making the country safer and more secure, and so I would say that was the first and foremost thing.

And then it's about making the country more prosperous, and I think that tax policy will be really key to that.

I would argue that, um, not only, uh, extending, uh, the policies from 2017, which included lower rates for families and doubling of the child tax credit, near doubling of the standard deduction, and there's a 199A deduction for small businesses in there.

But for, for your part, as the Senate majority leader, as a senator, as an American, wh- what do you, wh- what do you think should be done on this? What do you hope to accomplish? Anything, uh, looking forward to the new year? Uh, what sort of role do you want the Senate to play in, in combating these threats?

Do you think there will be another one, Leader?

Could be.

I mean, I'm s- I'm open to that and some of our colleagues are interested in, in another reconciliation bill as well.

We actually have a couple of vehicles available to us.

The way the Democrats finished up, there was a, they didn't do a budget that last year, so we took their, their, uh, basically shell and, uh, legislative vehicle and their budget and did it.

So we actually have two that we could still do this next year if we wanted to.

And if there's a reason to, if, uh, if we come together behind some healthcare proposal that we think we wanna make permanent and create more affordable healthcare, I could see that happening.

How do you feel about who you've recruited and how it's going on those three vacancies and our three target Senators, Collins, uh, Houston and Sullivan?

Agreed.

And I think the things...

And, and, and honestly, is my, is my neighborhood safe? Is my community safe? Is my country safe? I mean, I think that safety and security are, are major issues.

And I think the work that we've done to close the border, uh, the work we've done on national security to get more funding into the areas that make sure that the country is secure, and, and safe, and, and ready to deal with what i- the, you know, the threat matrix that is out there in a very dangerous world.

And then I think on the economic front, I mean, the things we're doing in the area of tax and regulatory policy, energy policy, will create better-paying jobs, better opportunities, and expanding economy.

Uh, and then just the tax stuff that we've done is more money in the pockets of the American people.

I mean, the average family in this country, at least in my state, it's about $2,500-... less in taxes that they're gonna pay next year because we extended the tax relief from 2017.

Mm-hmm.