John Thune

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. I move to proceed to Calendar No. 27, H.J. Res. 25.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate resume legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, at a time to be determined by the majority leader, following consultation with the Democrat leader, no earlier than Tuesday, April 1, S.J. Res. 37 be discharged from the Committee on Finance and the Senate proceed to its consideration; further, that there be 6 hours for debate only, with the time equally divided between the leaders or their designees, on the joint resolution; and that following the use or yielding back of that time, the joint resolution be read a third time and the Senate vote on the joint resolution.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate now proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following resolutions which are at the desk: S. Res. 140, S. Res. 141, S. Res. 142.

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolutions be agreed to, the preambles be agreed to, and 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 Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration and the Senate now proceed to S. Res. 120.

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

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 Thursday, March 27; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; and notwithstanding rule XXII, the Senate proceed to legislative session and resume consideration of Calendar No. 34, S.J. Res. 18; and that at 11:20 a.m., the Senate vote on passage of the joint resolution; further, that following disposition of the joint resolution, the Senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of Executive Calendar No. 43, Paul Lawrence, and the Senate vote on the motion to invoke cloture; and if cloture is invoked, the Senate vote on confirmation of the nomination at 2 p.m.; finally, that if any nominations are confirmed during Thursday's session, the motions 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, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to waive the mandatory quorum call with respect to the Bhattacharya nomination.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 138, submitted earlier today.

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, from the day he took office, President Trump made it clear that he would not hesitate to take action to deter our enemies and protect our Nation, and that is exactly what he has been doing, both here at home and abroad. Needless to say, 4 years of recordbreaking illegal immigration at our southern border, under President Biden, left a gaping hole in our national security. The chaos that raged at our southern border was an invitation to terrorists and criminals, and law enforcement was stretched thin trying to deal with the flood of illegal immigration. During his campaign, President Trump made it very clear that putting an end to our border crisis was going to be at the top of his agenda, and he has been delivering on that promise. In just 2 months, his bold action to secure our border and enforce our immigration laws has led to a precipitous drop in illegal crossings at the southern border. U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded just 11,709 encounters--apprehensions between ports of entry, plus inadmissible aliens--at our southern border for the month of February-- 11,709. Just to put that number into perspective, in February 2024, with President Biden, Customs and Border Protection recorded 189,913 encounters at our southern border--189,913 to 11,709, a 93-percent drop. President Trump and his administration have made incredible progress, and our Nation is more secure because of their efforts.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 43.

Mr. THUNE

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

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

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, meanwhile, on the international front, President Trump is taking a similarly assertive approach to protecting our country and our interests. Over the last 18 months, since Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, Iran-backed Houthis in the Middle East have carried out literally hundreds of attacks on U.S. international shipping and on U.S. forces. Airstrikes by the Biden administration failed to stop the Houthis' activities, and international shipping has been significantly affected. Ships now routinely avoid the Red Sea and the Suez Canal in favor of going around the southern tip of Africa, a route that means longer travel times for goods. And those ships that do traverse the Red Sea face significant danger to their cargoes and, above all, to their personnel. This is an unacceptable situation, and so President Trump is taking action. Within days of taking office, President Trump had redesignated the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization--after the Biden administration took them off the list--and 10 days ago, President Trump ordered extensive airstrikes against Houthi targets. Even more importantly, he has made it very clear to the Houthis that those strikes will continue, unless and until the Houthis cease their attacks on U.S. forces and commercial shipping in the Red Sea. And because the Houthis do not act alone but with the support of Iran, President Trump is also making it clear to Iran that it needs to stop aiding and abetting Houthi terror. So much of the violence and unrest in the Middle East is carried out by groups funded, armed, and sometimes trained by Iran, and any response to this violence must recognize Iran's role, as well as that of its proxies, like the Houthis. I am grateful for the long-overdue action that President Trump is taking, both here at home, on our border, and against Houthi terrorists abroad. It is this kind of decisive action that will encourage our enemies to think twice before menacing our Nation or threatening our interests.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Madam 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 eight requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority Leaders. Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: committee on armed services The Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a closed briefing. committee on finance The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 9:30 a.m., to consider a nomination. committee on finance The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 10:10 a.m., to consider a nomination. committee on foreign relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. committee on the judciary The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 2 p.m., to conduct a hearing. select committee on intelligence The Select Committee on Intelligence is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 10 a.m., to conduct an open hearing followed by a closed hearing. subcommittee on cybersecurity The Subcommittee on Cybersecurity of the Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 2:30 p.m., to receive testimony in closed and open session. subcommittee on seapower The Subcommittee on Seapower of the Committee on Armed Services is authorized to meet in open session during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at 2:30 p.m., to receive testimony.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m., Wednesday, March 26; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, morning business be closed, and the Senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of Calendar No. 39, James Bishop, postcloture, and at 11 a.m., the Senate vote on confirmation of the Bishop nomination; finally, if any nominations are confirmed during Wednesday's session, the motions 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. Madam President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 134, which is at the desk.