{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.thune.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=5BF5BE14-D9FC-4B90-9F50-D703518ABDED", "Thune: A Lot of Work Yet to Do", "2016-11-29", "2016", "2016-11", "Republican", "House", "SD", "John Thune", "T000250", "www.thune.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\tU.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today discussed the long list of accomplishments during the 114th Congress under Republican leadership. The Republican majority worked hard to pass a balanced budget, a major energy bill, a multi-year transportation bill, a Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization, and an education reform bill, among many others. Thune also discussed the work that\u2019s ahead for the 115th Congress: repealing and replacing Obamacare, immigration and tax reform, addressing the national debt, and finding solutions to various other issues impacting the American people.\r\nThune\u2019s remarks as prepared for delivery:\r\n\u201cMr. President, two years ago, the American people entrusted Republicans with the Senate majority.\r\n\u201cAt that time, things were in a bad way here in the Senate.\u00a0\r\n\u201cUnder Democrat control, the legislative process had almost ground to a halt.\r\n\u201cImportant bills weren\u2019t getting passed.\r\n\u201cAnd those that did get passed were frequently drafted behind closed doors, with Republicans and many rank-and-file Democrats shut out of the process.\r\n\u201cWhich, of course, means that the American people\u2019s voices were frequently shut out.\r\n\u201cWhen Republicans took control, we knew that getting the Senate working again had to be our first priority.\r\n\u201cAnd that\u2019s what we did.\r\n\u201cWe opened up debate, so senators from both parties could make their voices heard.\r\n\u201cWe started drafting legislation in committee again, so that bills were the result of discussion and compromise instead of being dictated by Democrat Party leaders.\r\n\u201cAnd we got the Senate passing real, substantial legislation again.\r\n\u201cA balanced budget.\r\n\u201cAppropriations bills.\r\n\u201cThe first major energy bill since the Bush administration.\r\n\u201cThe first significant education reform since 2002.\r\n\u201cI\u2019m particularly proud of two bills that the committee I chair \u2013 the Commerce Committee \u2013 worked on:\r\n \r\na Federal Aviation Administration bill with major airport security provisions, \r\nand the first long-term transportation bill since 2005.\r\n \r\n\u201cThe terrorist attacks in Brussels and Istanbul that occurred this year broadcast airport security challenges \u2013 particularly the soft target offered by large crowds in unsecured airport areas.\r\n\u201cThose were problems that we\u2019d been working on at the Commerce Committee for months before the attacks, and in July we passed an FAA bill that addresses them, and more.\r\n\u201cThe bill we passed requires the TSA to look at ways to improve security checkpoints to make the passenger screening process more efficient and effective.\r\n\u201cAnd it significantly increases the security presence in unsecured areas of airports.\r\n\u201cIt also improves vetting of airport employees to address the insider terrorist threat \u2013 the risk that an airport employee would give a terrorist access to secure areas.\r\n\u201cThe Senate passed this bill in July, and the president signed it into law a couple days later.\r\n\u201cI\u2019m proud of this law, which is the kind of substantial legislation we should be passing for the American people.\r\n\u201cI\u2019m also proud of the transportation bill we passed, part of which came out of my committee.\r\n\u201cWhen Congress fails to provide certainty about the way transportation funding will be allocated, states and local governments are left without the certainty they need to authorize projects or make long-term plans.\r\n\u201cImportant investments in infrastructure that support the economy are shelved.\r\n\u201cAnd jobs that depend on transportation are put in jeopardy.\r\n\u201cThe transportation bill we passed changes all that.\r\n\u201cIt reauthorizes transportation programs for the long term and provides five years of guaranteed funding.\r\n\u201cThat means states and local governments will have the certainty they need to invest in big transportation projects and the jobs they create.\r\n\u201cAnd that in turn means a stronger economy and a more reliable, safe, and effective transportation system.\r\n\u201cMr. President, I\u2019m proud of what we were able to accomplish over the past two years.\r\n\u201cBut there\u2019s a lot left to be done.\r\n\u201cSome of the most important measures we passed in the 114th Congress went nowhere thanks to opposition from Democrats and the White House:\r\n\u201cAn Obamacare repeal.\r\n\u201cLegislation to overturn some of the Obama administration\u2019s most burdensome regulations.\r\n\u201cLegislation to address the dangerous problem of so-called sanctuary cities, which refuse to work with federal immigration officials to deport illegal immigrants convicted of crimes.\r\n\u201cI\u2019m hopeful that with a Republican president, we\u2019ll be able to address these issues, and many more, in the 115th Congress.\r\n\u201cRepublicans have big plans for the 115th.\r\n\u201cIf there\u2019s one thing that this election made clear, it\u2019s that the Obama economy is not working for American families.\r\n\u201cAnd Republicans are committed to fixing that.\r\n\u201cGrowing our economy is going to be our number-one priority next Congress.\r\n\u201cThere are a number of things we can do to get our economy healthy again.\r\n\u201cWe can reform our tax code, to reduce the burden on American families and businesses.\r\n\u201cRight now, our nation has the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world.\r\n\u201cMore and more, American companies are focusing their business operations overseas because the tax situation is so much better abroad.\r\n\u201cAnd that means that American jobs are going overseas with them.\r\n\u201cWe have lost our competitive edge in an increasingly global economy.\r\n\u201cInstead of pushing corporations out of the country, we should bring our nation\u2019s corporate tax rate in line with those of other countries to keep more jobs here in the United States.\u00a0\r\n\u201cAnother big thing we can do is repeal some of the burdensome government regulations that are weighing down businesses.\r\n\u201cWhile some government regulations are necessary, every administration has to remember that regulations have consequences.\r\n\u201cThe more resources individuals and businesses spend complying with unnecessary government regulations, the less they have to focus on the growth and innovation that drive our economy and create new opportunities for workers.\r\n\u201cThe overregulation of the last eight years has left businesses with few resources to dedicate to growing and creating jobs.\r\n\u201cAnother thing we need to do is address our national debt, which has nearly doubled over the past eight years.\r\n\u201cAll that debt is a drag on the economy.\r\n\u201cIt slows growth and reduces economic opportunity.\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s time to get our government back on a budget.\r\n\u201cAnother way we can help lift the burden on American families is by repealing and replacing Obamacare.\r\n\u201cI don\u2019t need to tell anyone that the president\u2019s health care law is broken.\r\n\u201cThe promise of lower premiums and affordable health care has given way to the reality of giant premium increases and massive deductibles.\r\n\u201cA Gallup poll released yesterday found that 80 percent of Americans want major changes to Obamacare or want the law repealed and replaced.\u00a0\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s time to give the American people health care reform that actually works.\r\n\u201cAnother priority for the 115th Congress will be national security.\r\n\u201cAmericans are rightfully worried about the threat posed by terrorist groups like ISIS, which has spread violence and devastation not only in the Middle East but across Europe and beyond.\u00a0\r\n\u201cRepublicans are committed to defeating ISIS abroad and keeping Americans safe here at home.\r\n\u201cWe\u2019re also committed to keeping Americans safe by securing our borders.\r\n\u201cWe must have secure borders and policies that encourage legal immigration while discouraging illegal immigration.\u00a0\r\n\u201cThen there are the other priorities we need to address:\r\n\u201cConfirming a Supreme Court nominee who will judge based on the law and the Constitution.\r\n\u201cProtecting religious liberty.\r\n\u201cAnd more.\r\n\u201cMr. President, Republicans are aware of the trust the American people have placed in us.\r\n\u201cAnd we are committed to earning it.\r\n\u201cWe\u2019re going to spend the 115th Congress fighting for Americans\u2019 priorities.\r\n\u201cWe have a real chance to get things done in the next Congress, and I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to address the challenges facing our nation.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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": ["https://www.thune.senate.gov//public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=5BF5BE14-D9FC-4B90-9F50-D703518ABDED"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 13.437794987112284, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": 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