John Thune’s “Delivered” Victory Lap Gets Ratioed Over Election Security
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) tried to take a victory lap Tuesday night. Instead, his post drew a flood of criticism from grassroots conservatives.
Thune claimed Republicans had spent the last two years delivering “more money in your pocket,” “safer streets,” and “more opportunities to get ahead,” while Democrats opposed the agenda “at every turn.” It was a confident message. The reaction was anything but.
As of Wednesday morning, the post had about 1,400 likes and more than 10,500 replies. The imbalance quickly became the story, with critics pressing Thune for results.
A Community Note attached to the post added more pressure. It said the 119th Congress was the least productive in history and that no Congress had enacted less legislation or laws. It also said Johnson had canceled 63 scheduled voting days, giving members an extra two months of paid time off, with no House votes scheduled until after the election.
The latest Résumé of Congressional Activity, covering January 3 through August 31, 2026, gave critics another set of numbers to cite. It showed that the House passed 291 House bills while the Senate passed only 20 of them. That leaves roughly 271 House bills pending without a Senate floor vote under Thune’s leadership.
The most visible response came from grassroots organizer Scott Presler. His reply drew more than 12,700 likes, nearly ten times Thune’s like count.
“You have spent the last 2 years doing nothing to secure our elections after Republican voters delivered the popular vote & all 3 branches of gov’t. Even DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said, ‘We have 300,000 [non-citizen registered voters] we’re looking into.’ The question millions of Americans have is why don’t you care about us?”
That reply captured the central grievance. Republican voters had handed the party the White House, the House, and the Senate. The demands were straightforward: clean elections, proof of citizenship to register, voter ID, and the removal of ineligible names from voter rolls. Critics argued that Thune failed to deliver on those priorities.
Hunter Eagleman, a retired homicide detective, went directly after the record. “You literally haven’t don’t shit. Our elections are still NOT secured. 40 MILLION still going to the Taliban. You’ve spent 8 weeks this year on vacation.”
Another user reduced the complaint to one line: “Yet you refused to pass the SAVE Act.”
Michael Flynn Jr. posted the question many of Thune’s critics were asking: “Are u fckn kidding? Election security anyone?”
Another reply accused Thune of spending two years blocking the agenda Republican voters expected him to advance. “You haven’t delivered a damn thing. Two years in charge and all you’ve been is a RINO roadblock. Elections still unsecured, SAVE Act still dead, and you’re patting yourself on the back. Absolutely nothing.”
The final contrast came from a reply arguing that Donald Trump was signing deals around the world and expanding American power while Thune could not rally his own party behind the SAVE Act: “Donald Trump is signing deals around the world and expanding American power. Meanwhile, you can’t even whip your own party into passing the SAVE Act. What a contrast in leadership.…”
Republicans have spent the last two years delivering on our agenda.
More money in your pocket. Safer streets. More opportunities to get ahead.
Democrats have spent much of the last two years opposing our goals at every turn. pic.twitter.com/WW7D78FbRf
— Leader John Thune (@LeaderJohnThune) September 22, 2026