U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune appeared on Fox News’ America’s Newsroom to discuss current political issues, including the ongoing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown, the War Powers Resolution, and energy policy.
Addressing the DHS shutdown, Thune said, “The ball’s really in the Democrats’ court … these are agencies that defend the homeland. That’s the Department of Homeland Security. It is the Coast Guard, it is the TSA, it is FEMA, it is cybersecurity. The Democrats have made a conscious decision to shut that down … We’re 20 days into this right now. A lot of these people aren’t getting paid. We live in a dangerous world.
“The Democrats are … playing with fire here, and they need to come to their senses and come to the conclusion that we need to get beyond this and put people back to work, open up these agencies, and let them continue with the mission that they’re tasked with.”
On the subject of military action and Congress’ role under the War Powers Resolution, Thune stated: “Most Democrats in the chamber decided to vote against our troops and against America’s interests. And even if you believe the War Powers is constitutional – and that’s a very debatable, valid question – it doesn’t require the president to notify Congress until 60 days … so the president is perfectly within his constitutional authority under Article II to take this action to defend and protect America’s national security interests. [The administration is] doing that with great success.
“We ought to be cheering our troops on [and] praying for their safety, rather than getting out there and demagoguing this and turning it into a political issue, which is what the Democrats in the Senate are doing.”
When discussing energy costs in light of recent gas price increases, Thune remarked: “I think we’re always concerned about rising gas prices. And obviously what the president has done through his energy policies has made America more energy independent. If this had happened … 10, 20, 30 years ago, gas prices would be through the roof … It’s going to be a manageable thing and we’re going to continue to increase American production of energy so that we drive that gas price down and not make ourselves dependent upon sources of energy from outside of the United States, and particularly places like the Middle East that can be very unstable.”
Thune represents South Dakota as U.S. senator according to his official website, where he focuses on agriculture, energy policy and economic development initiatives. He also serves as Senate Republican Whip and holds committee assignments on Finance; Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry; as well as Commerce, Science & Transportation as noted by his office. His outreach includes supporting veterans’ services alongside community engagement efforts across South Dakota as detailed online.
