President-elect Donald Trump won’t succeed in his agenda, get his Cabinet nominees confirmed, secure the border, or extend tax cuts if the Senate shows up for work only 102 days next year, as it did this year. Luckily for Trump, Sen. John Thune (R-SD), the incoming majority leader, has set an aggressive schedule for 2025 that will almost double the upper chamber’s number of working days. This is the type of congressional leadership Trump needs from Republicans if he is going to have a successful second term.
This year was an election year, so the Senate was out more than normal. But even in nonelection years, the Senate’s normal has become lackadaisical, with senators not arriving until Monday afternoon, working two days, Tuesday and Wednesday, and then jetting back home on Thursday afternoon. But a three-day workweek is not going to cut it anymore.
