Senator John Thune Lists Senate Accomplishments in 2025

Legislative Productivity in 2025

• 🗓️ The United States Senate experienced a historic number of votes in 2025, with 653 cast, the most in half a century, surpassing even the "Contract with America" year of 1995.
• ⏱️ The Senate also saw a historic number of hours and days in session, indicating a significant commitment of time to legislative work.

The Working Families Tax Cuts Act

• 💸 The flagship bill of the year was the Working Families Tax Cuts Act, which made tax cuts enacted in 2017 permanent and added further relief.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 This includes permanently lower rates, an increased standard deduction, a higher child tax credit, a new deduction for seniors, and tax exemptions for tips and overtime.
• 💼 Businesses also received permanent tax relief to promote growth, job creation, and opportunities for American workers.
• 📊 The average American family was projected to save $3,752 annually, preventing what would have been the largest tax increase in American history.

Broader Legislative Achievements

• 🛡️ Beyond tax cuts, the Senate invested in border security, safer streets, and national security.
• ⛽ Energy policies focused on repealing the "Democrats natural gas tax" and unleashing American energy production for stable and affordable supply.
• 🚜 Modernization efforts included updating the farm safety net, addressing housing costs, and repairing the air traffic control system.
• ⚖️ Actions were taken to repeal burdensome rules and regulations, such as the Biden electric vehicle mandate and energy mandates that would increase prices.
• 💊 The Halt Fentanel Act was passed to permanently schedule fentanyl analogs, and the Lake and Riley Act aims to keep criminal illegal aliens off streets.
• 🪙 The Genius Act established a federal framework for stablecoins, promoting US leadership in financial innovation.
• 🚫 The Take It Down Act was passed to combat non-consensual explicit images online.
• 🚫 Legislation was attempted to prevent biological males from competing in women's sports, but was blocked by Democrats.

Judicial and Executive Nominations

• 🧑‍⚖️ A priority was ensuring President Trump had his team in place, with 417 nominees confirmed by the end of 2025.
• 📈 This number significantly surpasses confirmations at the same point in President Trump's first term (323) and President Biden's term (365).
• 🚫 The transcript notes a historic level of obstruction by Democrats regarding nominations, with President Trump being the only president without a single civilian nomination confirmed by unanimous consent or voice vote.

Return to Regular Order

• 🏛️ Efforts were made to return the Senate to a "regular order" process for considering appropriations bills.
• 📜 Despite delays caused by a Democratic government shutdown, multiple individual appropriations bills were signed into law, with five more on the way.

Overall Impact

• 🚀 The work in 2025 is expected to result in safer streets, more money in pockets, and new opportunities for American people and families.
• 🌟 The Senate plans to continue advancing these priorities and build on the record of accomplishments in 2026.