Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today applauded the recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that it would enact changes to the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program requirements following demands from a group of senators regarding concerns about how the strict limits on calorie intake were impacting students.... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today voted in support of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which is the primary vehicle for authorizing defense spending for Fiscal Year 2014. Included in the compromise version of the bill was Thune’s amendment (S.Amdt. 2093) that put Congress on record in support for the... Continue Reading
Senators John Thune (R-S.D.) and Tim Johnson (D-S.D.), and Representative Kristi Noem (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) Eric Shinseki calling for him to return Hot Springs’ Black Hills Health Care System (BHHCS) to full operation following the lack of leadership and breach of good... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today issued a statement following the Senate Finance Committee’s markup of the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) repeal and replace bill, the SGR and Medicare Beneficiary Access Improvement Act: “I’m pleased to have amendments in the Chairman’s mark and approved by the committee that are important to... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Chairman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs and Global Competitiveness, today introduced legislation to protect the Internet from restrictive measures... Continue Reading
U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, today made the following comment on the passing of former South African President Nelson Mandela: “Nelson Mandela was a man of courage, honor, and conviction, and the world is a better place because of him. His legacy will continue... Continue Reading
U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, today issued the following comment regarding President Obama’s latest ObamaCare sales pitch: “The harsh reality facing many this holiday season is cancelled policies, spiking premiums, skyrocketing deductibles, and loss of access to their doctors. But instead of offering relief... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to Farm Bill conferees strongly urging them to reach an agreement on the controversial Farm Bill provisions rather than consider another long-term extension of the expired 2008 Farm Bill. Thune said in his letter, “An unfinished Farm Bill will continue the highly... Continue Reading
U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, tonight criticized the Obama administration’s decision to publish (see page 70) a proposed rule that would exempt union health care plans, known as Taft-Hartley plans, from the ObamaCare reinsurance tax, which would likely force other self-insured plans, including those... Continue Reading
U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and John Thune (R-S.D.) today introduced bipartisan legislation that increases the transparency of healthcare costs in Medicare – helping doctors, health systems, private insurers, and research institutions provide more efficient, higher quality healthcare and better patient outcomes. “Medicare is the single largest payer of healthcare... Continue Reading
U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, today issued the following statement on the Senate Democrats’ use of the nuclear option to change the Senate rules for confirming executive and judicial nominees: “Senate Democrats are desperate to talk about anything other than the disastrous train wreck... Continue Reading
Following media reports that the Obama administration is once again trying to find a way to exempt unions from ObamaCare’s numerous taxes and mandates, U.S. Senators John Thune (R-S.D.), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), and eight of their Republican colleagues today introduced the Union Tax Fairness Act (S. 1724),... Continue Reading
