WASHINGTON – Republicans took control of the U.S. Senate on Friday under novel leadership by South Dakota’s John Thune, who has vowed to keep intact that body’s legislative filibuster – the 60-vote threshold for major legislation that some Democrats wanted to eliminate.
Thune follows in the footsteps of the longest-serving Senate GOP leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, and takes the reins as Republicans prepare to take control of the Senate, House and White House when President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
In his first opening remarks as leader, Thune said he would restore the upper house as a “place for discussion and deliberation” as the body pursues an aggressive agenda of overhauling immigration and extending tax cuts through 2017 – not to mention actually funding the government, albeit with a delay of several months , after the transient measures expired in March.
Republicans are looking at the budget reconciliation process — a legislative maneuver that allows the Senate to avoid a filibuster with a 60-vote majority — to achieve as many of the party’s political goals as can be justified by a budget resolution issued once per fiscal year. Democrats used reconciliation twice during their unified government in the 117th Congress.
Still, Thune stressed in his opening remarks at the beginning of the 119th Congress that the Senate must remain a “more stable, more thoughtful and more thoughtful” body.
“Unfortunately, many people today would like to see the Senate become a carbon copy of the House of Representatives,” Thune said on the floor.
“And this,” he continued, “is not what our founders intended and what our country needs. One of my priorities as president will be to ensure that the Senate remains the Senate. This means maintaining the legislative filibuster.”
Thune described the 60-vote rule as having “the greatest impact on preserving the vision of the founders of the United States Senate.”
Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, who has served in that chamber since 1981, resumed on Friday, the position of president pro tempore of the Senate – he last held this position in 2019-2021.
Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, currently the body’s minority leader, said on the floor Friday that he looked forward to working with Thune and wanted to continue “reaching across the aisle.”
“I want to work with the new Republican leadership to continue this bipartisan momentum in the new year. “I don’t expect us to agree on everything or even many issues,” Schumer said. “But there are still opportunities to improve Americans’ lives if we are willing to work together.”
New senators
Ten novel senators were sworn in on Friday, including several Republicans who replaced seats held by Democrats.
They included Republican Sen. David McCormick, who ousted longtime Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania; Sen. Tim Sheehy, a Republican who flipped the Montana Senate seat previously held by Democrat Jon Tester; and novel GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno, who wrested the seat from longtime Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio.
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice was not among the lawmakers sworn in Friday. Justice, a Republican who won the seat of outgoing independent Joe Manchin III, will remain the state’s governor until Jan. 13, after which he will move to the Senate.
New sense. Democrats Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland and Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware made history on Friday as the first two black women to serve simultaneously in the upper house.
Other newly sworn-in senators on Friday were Republicans Jim Banks of Indiana and John Curtis of Utah, as well as Democrats Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Ruben Gallego of Arizona.
Sense. Democrat Adam Schiff of California and Andy Kim of New Jersey were sworn in in December.
Last updated at 15:13, January 3, 2025
