{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=CB6EB754-A676-499E-BF4C-15D1E4F1ABB7", "Thune Discusses the Importance of American Leadership on the Global Stage", "2023-11-07", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "SD", "John Thune", "T000250", "www.thune.senate.gov", "thune", "https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "Click here to watch the video.\n\nWASHINGTON \u2014 U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today spoke on the Senate floor about the importance of American leadership on the global stage. Thune noted that America must maintain and use its strength and influence to contain evil actors like Iran, Russia, and China in order to advance peace and freedom around the globe.\n\nThune\u2019s remarks below (as prepared for delivery):\n\n\u201cMr. President, we have had no shortage of reminders in the last couple of years that we continue to live in a dangerous world.\n\n\u201cVladimir Putin\u2019s war of aggression in Ukraine, increased Chinese belligerence, and Hamas\u2019 October 7 attack, enabled by Iran, are all powerful reminders of the fact that there will always be malign actors in this world who must be confronted.\n\n\u201cThese events are also a powerful reminder of something else \u2013 the need for American leadership on the global stage.\n\n\u201cNature abhors a vacuum, and if the United States and other free countries don\u2019t lead, other countries will fill the void.\n\n\u201cCountries like Iran.\n\n\u201cRussia.\n\n\u201cAnd China.\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t need to tell anyone that all three of these countries have been flexing their power in recent years and seeking to expand their footprint.\n\n\u201cIran, as Hamas\u2019 recent attack so pointedly reminded us, is supporting terrorist organizations throughout the Middle East:\n\n\u201cHamas.\n\n\u201cHezbollah.\n\n\u201cPalestinian Islamic Jihad.\n\n\u201cThe Houthis in Yemen.\n\n\u201cShia militias that are attacking U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria.\n\n\u201cThe list goes on.\n\n\u201cNor is Iran confining its sphere of activities to Middle Eastern countries.\n\n\u201cIran has provided Russia with weapons to use in its war on Ukraine, and it is helping Russia to build its own drone manufacturing facility to dramatically increase Russia\u2019s drone supply.\n\n\u201cRussia, of course, is currently providing the world with a clear illustration of its imperial aspirations in its war of aggression in Ukraine.\n\n\u201cAnd Putin has made it clear that his ambitions don\u2019t end there.\n\n\u201cHe is also occupying territory in Georgia and seemingly working on asserting Russian influence in Moldova and the Balkans.\n\n\u201cAnd as for China \u2026 whether it\u2019s increasingly aggressive threats against Taiwan, efforts to expand its military and economic hold over the Indo-Pacific, menacing U.S military aircraft, or sending a spy balloon across the United States in an attempt to gather information on sensitive military sites, China has made it very clear that it is set on expanding its power \u2013 and woe to anyone who gets in its way.\n\n\u201cAnd it is backing up its determination with an aggressive military buildup that has seen the Chinese military outpace the U.S. military in modern capabilities like hypersonic missiles.\n\n\u201cSo, Mr. President, it\u2019s abundantly clear that bad actors are flexing their power.\n\n\u201cAnd, as I said, our response to that must be a renewed commitment to American leadership internationally.\n\n\u201cNow American leadership doesn\u2019t mean attempting to fix every country\u2019s problems or get militarily involved in every conflict around the globe.\n\n\u201cWe neither can nor should attempt to become the world\u2019s policeman.\n\n\u201cBut that doesn\u2019t mean that we should retreat from the global stage or confine our focus to one or two areas.\n\n\u201cThere is a lot we can do while not attempting to play global policeman or solve every conflict.\n\n\u201cIn the first place we can and should project the kind of strength that makes bad actors unwilling to tangle with us \u2013 or our allies.\n\n\u201cThat means first and foremost having a strong military prepared to meet and defeat any threat, backed up by resilient supply chains.\n\n\u201cBut it also means things like a strong economy and developing our energy resources so that we don\u2019t have to depend on hostile countries or hostile areas of the world for oil.\n\n\u201cMilitary and economic strength is a powerful deterrent.\n\n\u201cBut it\u2019s not enough.\n\n\u201cWe also have to engage on the global stage.\n\n\u201cWe need to build and maintain relationships with allies, support free nations, and stand against hostile actions by hostile countries.\n\n\u201cThe stronger the bonds of free nations and the more united our response to belligerent countries, the less scope these countries will have for their aggression.\n\n\u201cThe world stage is going to be dominated by someone, Mr. President.\n\n\u201cAnd when free countries abdicate a leadership role, malign actors are likely to end up controlling the playing field.\n\n\u201cMr. President, some might suggest that the United States should only engage globally when events directly and immediately affect us.\n\n\u201cBut unfortunately that thinking often involves underestimating just how much we are affected by world events \u2013 even those that are not a direct and immediate attack on U.S. interests.\n\n\u201cSome, for example, would question our continued support for Ukraine.\n\n\u201cWell, Mr. President, I question what will happen if we don\u2019t support Ukraine.\n\n\u201cWithdrawing American support for Ukraine could very well end up with a victorious and newly emboldened Putin on the doorstep of four former Soviet satellite states \u2013 now NATO members whom we are bound by treaty to protect.\n\n\u201cIf Putin wins in Ukraine, it\u2019s not hard to imagine him viewing incursions into one or more of those former Soviet states as a good idea.\n\n\u201cAnd given our treaty obligations \u2013 and the imperative to prevent a Soviet Union 2.0 \u2013 it\u2019s not hard to imagine American troops being drawn into the resulting conflict.\n\n\u201cSupporting Ukrainians\u2019 efforts to defend themselves against Putin\u2019s war of aggression is a way of preventing a conflict that would require a far greater commitment from the United States.\n\n\u201cNot to mention warding off a likely catastrophic economic fallout in Europe from a wider war, which would take a heavy toll on American businesses and consumers.\n\n\u201cFurthermore, there\u2019s little question that a Russian victory in Ukraine would embolden not just Putin but other malign actors \u2013 notably China.\n\n\u201cIf Russia is successful at taking over part or all of Ukraine, why shouldn\u2019t China think it can successfully take over Taiwan?\n\n\u201cWe should be supporting Ukraine \u2013 not just because peoples fighting for freedom against tyranny are worthy of support, but because supporting Ukraine, like supporting Taiwan and Israel and other free countries, is in our national interest.\n\n\u201cBut, Mr. President, we should support Ukraine with an endgame in mind.\n\n\u201cSaying we\u2019ll back Ukraine \u201cfor as long as it takes,\u201d as the president likes to say, is noble.\n\n\u201cBut not being intentional about the resources we send risks prolonging this war without advancing toward that end state.\n\n\u201cWe can\u2019t expect Ukraine to tread water indefinitely, and I am hopeful that the arrival of M1 Abrams tanks, longer-reaching ATACMS missiles, and (soon) F-16s, while too late to meaningfully contribute to Ukraine\u2019s summer counteroffensive, will enable Ukraine to make new battlefield gains.\n\n\u201cMr. President, the Senate may soon take up a supplemental spending bill to address defense issues.\n\n\u201cAnd any such bill should promote security abroad by providing support for our allies \u2013 specifically right now Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.\n\n\u201cAnd after three successive years of record-breaking illegal migration at our southern border, we should make sure that any supplemental also focuses on building up our security here at home by tightening security at our borders, in addition to addressing military priorities like ramping up munitions production.\n\n\u201cSenators Graham, Lankford, and Cotton have produced a substantive plan to help secure the border and stem the historic level of illegal migration under this president\u2019s watch.\n\n\u201cAnd we should take up their proposal to address this essential aspect of our national security.\n\n\u201cMr. President, we can\u2019t solve every problem or bring peace to every conflict around the world.\n\n\u201cBut the United States can be a powerful force for good, if we\u2019re willing to lead.\n\n\u201cAnd we should use our strength and influence to contain evil actors and advance peace and freedom around the globe.\n\n\u201cFailing to do so may have consequences for our national security now and long into the future.\n\n\u201cMr. President, I yield the floor.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": 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