Thune stuck between Trump's demands, members' recess plans
Why it matters: For senators, the summer recess is next to holy. For the president, confirming his nominees is simply more important.
"We're thinking about it," Thune told Axios on Monday about Trump's call to cancel all — or part — of the August break.
"We want to get as many noms through the pipeline as we can," he said.
But still, August is August.
"People are accustomed to going back," Thune said. "This is the time of year when they go back and interact with their constituents and talk about some of the things that we've gotten done."
"I do not believe we need to cancel the August recess," Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) said Monday. "Please wipe that suggestion off of your DNA."
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) vehemently defended the extended break: "You get us for the rest of the year back here, but there's got to be some time when we can actually be addressing the needs of our constituents back home."
Driving the news: After Trump's weekend post on Truth Social, leadership has made clear to senators that fiddling with the August recess is on the table.
Thune has talked to Trump about the president's goals and told reporters he met with the president on Monday.
The intrigue: If Thune moves forward with August votes, there is always the risk of attendance challenges.
The Senate requires a minimum of 51 senators for a quorum— and it only takes one Democrat to force a quorum call.
With just a three-seat margin, Republicans are "only as strong as our four weakest links," as one senior aide put it.
What we're hearing: The Senate is buzzing about what Thune will do, according to conversations with senators and staffers.
Senators are likely to put on a brave face and say publicly that they are willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish Trump's agenda.
But trust us, both sides want to go home.
It's more than a vacation from D.C.: Many pack their schedules with official international travel and fundraisers. They also know they need to sell Trump's "big, beautiful bill" to constituents who aren't convinced of its merits.
Zoom in: The Senate's schedule has already been relatively brutal — fewer and shorter recess weeks than usual, late-night votes, occasional working Fridays, four all-nighter vote-a-ramas, and 94 confirmed administration officials.
With Republicans relying on party-line votes to move forward, Democrats' only leverage has been to make progress as miserable as possible.
Trump is "the first president in history that hasn't had a nom adopted by this point in his presidency either by unanimous consent or voice — not a single one," Thune told reporters on Monday.
What we're watching: A threat of canceling August recess could also be a negotiation tool to convince Democrats to give them a break on lower-level nominees who ordinarily would have an easier time getting confirmed.
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The Hill
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Newsweek
3 minutes ago
- Newsweek
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Pam Bondi, U.S. Attorney General, during a press conference at Port Everglades on April 09, 2025 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida (left) and the 2019 mug shot of Jeffrey Epstein (right). Pam Bondi, U.S. Attorney General, during a press conference at Port Everglades on April 09, 2025 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida (left) and the 2019 mug shot of Jeffrey Epstein (right). Joe Raedle/Kypros/GETTY In his seven-point action plan Wyden said Bondi should "direct DOJ prosecutors and FBI agents to immediately investigate the evidence contained in the Treasury Department records on Epstein" including alleged payments of several hundred million dollars to Epstein from "ultra-wealthy Wall Street financiers." He also said the DOJ should subpoena internal records related by Epstein held by major Western banks. Another of Wyden's points urged the DOG to investigate payments of "hundreds of millions of dollars" via Russian banks that "were correlated to the movement of women or girls around the world." He also called on the department to subpoena documents from the U.S. Virgin Islands regarding a deal giving one of Epstein's associates immunity from prosecution in 2023. Wyden also said several major banks "likely broke the law" by only flagging suspect payments involving Epstein after he had been criminally charged, despite this being a requirement of federal anti-money laundering legislation. Finally Wyden urged the DOJ to "conduct depositions with bankers responsible for overseeing large accounts transacting with Jeffrey Epstein." On Wednesday The Wall Street Journal reported that in May Trump was informed that his name appeared "multiple times" in Epstein documents possessed by the DOJ by Bondi. White House communications director Steven Cheung described the report as "another fake news story." What People Are Saying In his letter Wyden said: "Epstein clearly had access to enormous financing to operate his sex trafficking network, and the details on how he got the cash to pay for it are sitting in a Treasury Department filing cabinet." In their joint statement earlier this month the FBI and DOJ said its "systematic review" of Epstein related files "revealed no incriminating 'client list.'" They added: "There was also no credible evidence found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions. We did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties." What Happens Next Trump is likely to face further pressure to release more documents related to the Epstein case from both congressional Democrats and a section of his own MAGA base. On Tuesday House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, adjourned the lower chamber till September in a move that blocks any imminent vote on releasing the Epstein files.
