South Dakota Senator John Thune, Mitch McConnell’s preferred replacement, has emerged victorious as the Senate Majority Leader.
Despite an ongoing effort for the past several days to push Florida Senator Rick Scott by big-name allies of President-elect Trump, it was not enough to pull him over the line.
Reuters, with the headline calling Thune an “insider,” is not helping sell the outcome:
U.S. Senate Republicans elected John Thune to lead the chamber next year, opting for a well-regarded insider and shrugging off a public pressure campaign by supporters of Donald Trump to pick a loyalist to the president-elect.
The South Dakota senator’s victory in a three-way contest is a sign the Senate could retain some degree of independence from Trump next year, when Republicans will control the White House and possibly both chambers of Congress. Republicans will hold at least 52 seats in the 100-seat Senate and are on track to retain their majority in the House of Representatives, where several races have yet to be decided.
Voters voted for… well, not John Thune last Tuesday.
In fact, it seemed like voters are sick of sending billions to Ukraine which may not jive with Thune’s recent vote in favor of continued support:
Thune and Cornyn are both hard core Ukraine fans.
Not only by their words, but their actions.Thune and Cornyn are not America First.
They are "fund wars" first. America Last. pic.twitter.com/gJrGeDk9Cr— Justin Theory (@realJustATheory) November 13, 2024
Why Senate Republicans gave in to support someone like Thune when Scott presented a much better alternative is yet to be explained:
🚨🚨 SENATE MAJORITY LEADER – Liberty Scores
Rick Scott – 86% (B)
John Thune – 51% (F)
John Cornyn – 54% (F)#RickScottForSenateLeader pic.twitter.com/OU9NJdAXf1— CH (@Christ0f3r__) November 11, 2024
As usual, entrenched Republicans are stubborn when it comes to falling in line for Trump’s agenda even though the American people put him back in the Oval Office with a clear mandate to get things done and fix the country as soon as possible. Hopefully, Thune will be a partner in that and not a stumbling block over the next two years of trifecta Republican control.
Expect Trump to work with what he has and try to build a cordial working relationship with Thune:
Expect Trump to play nice with Thune folks.
He has an agenda to pass and only 2 years until the midterms.
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 13, 2024
UPDATE:
Thune posted a statement vowing full support of Trump’s agenda:
Honored to serve as the next U.S. Senate majority leader. pic.twitter.com/zq9XLrPDUr
— Senator John Thune (@SenJohnThune) November 13, 2024
Donate Now to Support Election Central
- Help defend independent journalism
- Directly support this website and our efforts