John Thune

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, yesterday marked 6 months since President Trump took office, and today is the 200th day of the Republican majority here in the U.S. Senate. In that time, the Trump administration and Senate Republicans have been hard at work executing the mandate we received from the American people last November. We already have a number of accomplishments on the list. We got started by sending the Laken Riley Act to President Trump's desk during his first week in office to keep criminal illegal immigrants off our streets. President Trump signed the HALT Fentanyl Act last Wednesday, which permanently classifies fentanyl analogs as the deadly drugs they are. On Friday, he signed the GENIUS Act, the landmark bill to bring digital assets into the mainstream and secure U.S. leadership in financial innovation. And the first rescissions package in three decades is headed to the President for signature. We have passed measures to end 16 burdensome Biden-era regulations. We passed the TAKE IT DOWN Act to combat nonconsensual explicit images being shared online. And, of course, 2 weeks ago on the Fourth of July, the President signed into law the Big Beautiful Bill to deliver permanent tax relief to the American people to make our country safer, stronger, and more prosperous. We have additional bills coming down the pike. The Armed Services Committee under Chairman Wicker recently reported the National Defense Authorization Act of fiscal year 2026, and the Appropriations Committee under Chair Collins has reported out four bipartisan bills, which we will begin considering this week. I said last year that I was committed to bringing appropriations bills to the floor through regular order, and we are in the process of doing exactly that. Of course, any regular order consideration of appropriations bills is going to require cooperation from Democrats. This week, we will get a glimpse of where Democrats are on this issue. It was deeply disappointing the Democrat leader threatened to shut down the government if Republicans dared to pass legislation to trim just one-tenth of 1 percent of the Federal budget, but I am hopeful that is not the position of the Democratic Party. Time will tell. The Senate also has important work to do to confirm the President's nominees. We started out this year by confirming 21 of the President's Cabinet nominees at the fastest pace in more than two decades, and we have kept up our focus on getting President Trump's team into place. We have now confirmed 96 civilian nominees, far outpacing where the Senate was at this point in the first Trump administration. And the only reason, frankly, that we are not moving faster is because of Democrats' historic--that is right historic--level of obstruction. Democrats have been forcing cloture votes for every civilian nominee. Something that is without precedent. President Trump is the first President on record not to have a single civilian nominee go by unanimous consent or voice vote at this point in his Presidency. The first President on record. Think about that. And Democrats are using this strategy even on noncontroversial nominees. Almost a quarter of the nominees whose confirmation process Democrats have dragged out actually got more than 60 votes here on the Senate floor. The American people gave President Trump a mandate, and he deserves to have his team in place to execute that mandate for the American people. Democrats can continue to drag this process out, but Republicans are going to get these nominees confirmed. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 87.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to resume Calendar No. 171.

Mr. THUNE. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 50.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 131.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 259.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate resume legislative session and be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I have one request for a committee to meet during today's session of the Senate. It has the approval of the Majority and Minority Leaders. Pursuant to Rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committee is authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate:

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration and the Senate now proceed to S. Res. 276.

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following resolutions, which are at the desk: S. Res. 328, S. Res. 329, and S. Res. 330.

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolutions be agreed to, the preambles be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the postcloture time with respect to the Cole nomination be expired and the Senate vote on confirmation of the Cole nomination at 11 a.m., Tuesday, July 22; further, that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m. on Tuesday, July 22; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, morning business be closed, and the Senate resume consideration of the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 121, H.R. 3944; further, that notwithstanding rule XXII, the vote on the cloture motion with respect to the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 121, H.R. 3944, occur at a time to be determined by the majority leader in consultation with the Democratic leader.