The Republicans in the US Senate picked John Thune of South Dakota as the chamber's new leader Wednesday in lieu of more favored candidates in an unexpected move – that could be good news for Ukraine.
Congressional lawmakers scrambling to prepare for President-elect Donald Trump's new administration rejected his camp's favored candidate over Thune, who already holds a junior leadership position. He bested John Cornyn of Texas in a run-off to replace outgoing party leader Mitch McConnell, having already seen off Florida's Rick Scott, who was seen as most aligned with Trump.
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"This Republican team is united behind President Trump's agenda, and our work starts today," Thune, who represents South Dakota, said in a brief statement, according to AFP.
Unlike some conservative leaders, Thune has regularly shown his support for funding and arming Ukraine and keeping the allies’ common foe – namely Russia’s President Vladimir Putin – at bay.
“I'm hoping that there is enough of a consensus and a majority of Republicans in the House who believe that we need to defend America's interests, we need to stand with our allies, that this does represent a national security threat for our country,” he said during a PBS interview in March.
He has repeated many of Trump’s talking points about the US’s need to demonstrate its strength in global affairs.
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“America cannot retreat from the world stage,” he said. “American leadership is desperately needed now more than I think any time in recent history, and we need to make sure that Ukraine has the weaponry and the resources that it needs to defeat the Russians, because, if we're not sending them American weapons, and they succeed in Ukraine, and they go into a — roll into a NATO country, then we're going to be sending American sons and daughters.”
The senator also made clear that the US should provide Ukraine with the support it needs for victory.
“I would much rather send weaponry, ammunition, that sort of thing, and let the Ukrainian people, who have been really good about carrying the fight to the Russians, win that battle,” he said. “And I hope that we can get the political support to make that happen.”
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The Senate – the upper chamber of Congress – jealously guards its independence and institutional authority, and its leadership election was seen as a clue into how much leeway members intend to give Trump.
Cornyn had the longer history in the chamber, while Thune was always seen as most aligned with the traditionalist wing of the party led by McConnell.
Trump insiders had preferred Scott, an ardent loyalist who had promised to do the president-elect's bidding.
The president-elect's allies campaigned aggressively against Thune and Cornyn, pressuring individual senators in a push that has sparked a backlash – but Trump was wary of Scott's unpopularity and did not publicly endorse him.
Trump threw down a challenge Sunday to any prospective leader, demanding that they allow "recess appointments" – the naming of cabinet members while the Senate is adjourned, bypassing the body's normal confirmation process.
Thune – along with the others – passed Trump's loyalty test by replying that he was open to the idea.
Scott's cheerleaders – a group that includes tech billionaire and Trump confidant Elon Musk, and far-right media personality Tucker Carlson – questioned Thune's commitment to the incoming president, dredging up past opposition.
Trump is expected to further test lawmakers with a series of controversial moves, not least pardoning many of the people convicted of crimes related to the 2021 storming of the Capitol.
Other members have winced at the Republican president-elect's plans for steep, across-the-board import tariffs, although most are behind his tax cut extension – which is expected to add significantly to the national debt.
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