Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the newly elected leader of the Republican conference, has had a complicated relationship with President-elect Donald Trump over the years.
He called for Trump to drop out of the 2016 race in the wake of the infamous “Access Hollywood” scandal – though Thune later said he still planned to vote for Trump. And he condemned Trump’s actions surrounding the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot as indefensible.
Still, when Trump faced a vote in the Senate following his impeachment over the incident, Thune sided with McConnell and most of the Republican caucus in voting “not guilty.”
Trump didn’t forget the slight, calling for South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem to mount a primary challenge against Thune in 2022, though she demurred. Thune overwhelmingly won the primary that year and cruised to victory in the general election.
In May 2023, Thune endorsed Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina in the Republican presidential primary. But, as it became clear that Trump would capture the GOP nomination for a third straight time, Thune sought to mend relations with the former president.
Thune met with Trump at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in March, and they’ve spoken several times since CNN previously reported. Thune also met with the chairs of Trump’s transition team, Howard Lutnick, and Linda McMahon, in Washington earlier this month, a person familiar with the matter said.