2026年8月22日 美国东部时间上午10:56 / 福克斯新闻频道
约翰·图恩提出的一致同意休会请求未遭任何反对，无论场内场外均无参议员提出异议
撰稿：查德·珀格拉姆 福克斯新闻
国会首席通讯员查德·珀格拉姆报道参议院通过一项临时支出法案，将政府拨款延长至12月11日，并以50票赞成、49票的微弱优势确认托德·布兰奇为司法部长。
全新功能：您现在可以收听福克斯新闻文章！
blob:https://www.foxnews.com/13fa0edb-f26a-46aa-acd7-b1b4724b6b68
收听本文
时长：8分钟
参议院已经休会约两周。自参议员们于美国东部时间8月8日周六凌晨4:57宣布休会一个多月以来，参议院仅在四次简短的“形式主义”会议上短暂集会，每次仅持续数分钟。
形式主义会议中，参议院仅需少数几名议员到场，快速宣布开会、表决后随即休会。通常情况下，议事厅内不会超过一名参议员。
参议院真正恢复辩论和表决要等到9月15日周一下午。
记者手记：参议院围绕特朗普取消八月休会提议的内部分歧
总统敦促参众两院通过《保护大学体育法案》。（摄影：汤姆·布伦纳/盖蒂图片社）
但此前那场关于“取消八月休会”的轩然大波究竟如何？还记得唐纳德·特朗普总统以及包括犹他州共和党参议员迈克·李、佛罗里达州共和党参议员里克·斯科特在内的保守派人士，曾要求参议院整个八月留会辩论《拯救美国法案》。这是特朗普提出的首要立法诉求，该法案要求投票必须提供选民身份证明和公民资格证明。
参议院多数党领袖、南达科他州共和党议员约翰·图恩在两周多前参议院休会前曾现身议事厅。难道图恩是在深夜耍花招哄骗其他共和党议员休会五周？
绝非如此。事实上，哪怕是那些希望参议院留在华盛顿辩论《拯救美国法案》的共和党议员，也参与了图恩的计划，默许参议院在八月大部分时间和九月近半个月内休会。
这是怎么回事？
信不信由你，图恩和其他所有99名参议员都同意离开华盛顿。事实上，这也是此事唯一的推进方式。
当时参议院于周六凌晨2:07召开会议，即将开始一系列投票，以确认司法部长托德·布兰奇的提名并通过俄罗斯制裁法案。就在此时，图恩在参议院议事厅提出：
“当参议院于8月8日完成本职工作后，仅需在2026年8月10日周一上午10点、2026年8月13日周四上午8点召开形式主义会议。”图恩说道。
随后这位多数党领袖继续列出了一系列周一和周四的日期，供参议院召开此类形式主义会议。
当时俄亥俄州共和党参议员伯尼·莫雷诺正在主持参议院会议。
“无人反对吗？”图恩发言结束后，莫雷诺向全体议员问道。
全场鸦雀无声。
参议院彻夜混乱，特朗普《拯救美国法案》被束之高阁
2025年3月11日，华盛顿特区，参议院共和党政策午餐会后，南达科他州共和党参议员约翰·图恩在国会山举行的新闻发布会上发言。（摄影：阿尔·德拉戈/彭博社 via 盖蒂图片社）
换言之，参议院即将离开华盛顿。八月不会再就《拯救美国法案》展开辩论。参议院仅会在未来几周内举行简短的形式主义会议。
就在凌晨5点前，图恩再次从议事厅提出如下请求：
“议长女士，我请求一致同意，当参议院于9月10日周四休会后，休会至9月14日周一下午3点。祈祷和宣誓仪式结束后，会议记录将获得批准，晨间时段视为结束。”图恩说道。
这位南达科他州共和党人随后补充了一些标准议会程序用语，为9月15日周二下午就一项未决的加密货币监管法案进行程序性表决做好准备。
“无人反对。”当时主持会议的怀俄明州共和党参议员辛西娅·拉米斯说道。
图恩短暂停顿。但议事厅内无人出声。
这是因为当时议事厅内几乎空无一人，除了图恩和拉米斯。所有人都已离场，前往机场。
“议长女士，若参议院无其他待议事项，我请求按照此前指令休会。”图恩说道。
“参议院休会至美国东部时间周一上午10点。”拉米斯敲击议事台上独特的沙漏形状木槌宣布道。
无人反对。无需唱名表决。
参议院会议就此结束。
下面我为大家梳理一下其中细节。
参议院的大部分工作都通过“一致同意”机制推进。参议院是一个平等者的议事机构，全部100名参议员几乎拥有同等权力。参议院依靠“一致同意”——即全体100名成员的认可——来处理日常事务，比如进出会议、确定开会时间等。若全体参议员达成一致，参议院有时也会以一致同意方式通过法案——有时甚至是重大法案。
但一致同意确实名副其实。全体100名成员必须立场一致。如果99名参议员达成共识，却有一人反对，那就谈不上一致同意。
参议院议事厅，戴夫·麦考密克参议员担任主持。（福克斯新闻）
仅需一名参议员提出反对，就能打断场内的“一致同意”请求。值得注意的是，尽管部分共和党议员曾呼吁参议院八月留会，但无人提出异议。
这是因为图恩在到场发言前，就已经私下完成了一系列一致同意请求的筹备工作。
8月7日周五晚些时候，图恩在参议院启动了所谓的“热线程序”。他提出了一系列投票计划，包括确认布兰奇的提名、通过俄罗斯制裁法案以及审议其他几项议题。若有参议员对图恩的热线计划存在异议，需在当晚11:30前告知领导层。否则，图恩将前往议事厅提出一致同意请求，推进即将进行的一系列投票。图恩还将提出一项一致同意请求，明确参议院九月复会后的议事内容。
这一整套安排包括了前文提及的形式主义会议计划，以及参议院需延迟至9月14日周一晚间再进行投票。图恩还敲定了9月15日就加密货币法案进行程序性表决的安排。
任何议员都可以在私下环节提出反对。
但没有人这么做。这会破坏整个计划。
任何议员也可以在图恩现场提出一致同意请求时，在议事厅内当场反对。但这种情况也没有发生。这也是为什么莫雷诺和拉米斯都会向全体议员询问“是否有人反对”，或是直接宣布“无人反对，决议通过”。
不过，那些推动参议院八月留会辩论《拯救美国法案》的议员确实取得了一场小胜利。图恩在周六凌晨2:07提出的一致同意请求中，包含了一项关于俄亥俄州共和党参议员乔恩·赫斯特德推动的选民身份证法案的程序性表决。这一安排部分契合了特朗普期望的相关条款，同时也对赫斯特德有利——今年秋天他将与前俄亥俄州民主党参议员谢罗德·布朗展开激烈竞选。此次程序性表决还能让所有参议员公开表态支持或反对选民身份证制度。
所有共和党参议员都投了赞成票，所有民主党参议员都投了反对票。共和党人很可能会在今年秋天将这次唱名表决作为攻击民主党同僚的武器。
此次表决在参议院获得了简单多数支持。但问题在于：图恩的一致同意请求——已获得全体100名参议员预先同意——规定赫斯特德的这项法案需达到60票的门槛才能通过。共和党在参议院仅占53个席位。因此，若无民主党相助，赫斯特德的法案从一开始就注定失败。
所以参议院早已离席，并且还将继续休会数周。
这并非因为图恩私下策划了什么阴谋。这不仅仅是图恩违背了希望参议院留会的保守派议员的意愿。这也不仅仅是图恩与总统唱反调。
这些一致同意请求反映了全体100名参议员的共同意志。任何一方的议员都可以阻止这些提案。但他们没有这么做。
【点击此处下载福克斯新闻APP】
若有人问及为何参议院本月未留会审议《拯救美国法案》，你可以告诉他们，全体100名参议员已于8月8日周六凌晨4:57一致同意休会回家。
查德·珀格拉姆目前担任福克斯新闻频道（FNC）国会首席通讯员。他于2007年9月加入该媒体，总部位于华盛顿特区。
The Will of 100: Trump’s SAVE America Act sidelined after Senate unanimously agreed to August exit
August 22, 2026 10:56am EDT / Fox News
John Thune’s unanimous consent requests to recess went unchallenged, with no senator objecting on or off the floor
By Chad Pergram Fox News
Chief congressional correspondent Chad Pergram reports on the Senate passing an interim spending bill to fund the government through Dec. 11 and confirming Todd Blanche as Attorney General in a close 50-49 vote.
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!
blob:https://www.foxnews.com/13fa0edb-f26a-46aa-acd7-b1b4724b6b68
Listen to this article
8 min
The Senate has been out of session for about two weeks. It’s convened in brief “pro forma” sessions for just a couple of moments on four occasions since senators called it quits for more than a month at 4:57 a.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 8.
Pro forma sessions are where the Senate huddles for just a few seconds, gaveling in and gaveling out with a skeleton crew. It’s rare that more than one senator is even in the chamber.
The Senate truly isn’t back for debate and votes until the afternoon of Monday, Sept. 15.
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: INSIDE THE SENATE SHOWDOWN OVER TRUMP’S PUSH TO SCRAP AUGUST RECESS
The president urged both the House and Senate to pass the Protect Colle Sports Act.(Photo by Tom Brenner/Getty Images)
But what about all of that sturm and drang about “cancelling the August recess?” Remember that President Donald Trump and conservatives – ranging from Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to Rick Scott, R-Fla. – wanted the Senate to remain in session for the month to debate the SAVE America Act. That’s the chief legislative demand of Trump. It requires voter ID and proof of citizenship to vote.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., was on the floor when the Senate cut town a little more than two weeks ago. Did Thune hornswoggle his fellow Republicans into recessing the Senate for five weeks in the dead of night?
Hardly. In fact even those Republicans who would have liked senators to remain in Washington to debate the SAVE America Act were in on Thune’s plan, allowing the Senate to abandon town for most of August and nearly half of September.
Huh?
Believe it or not, Thune and all other 99 senators agreed to leave Washington. In fact, that’s the only way it could have happened.
The Senate was meeting at 2:07 a.m. that Saturday, on the verge of commencing a vote series to confirm Attorney General Todd Blanche and approve the Russia sanctions bill. That’s when Thune asked the following on the Senate floor:
“When the Senate completes its business on Aug. 8, to meet for pro forma sessions only at 10 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 10, 2026. 8 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026,” requested Thune.
The majority leader then continued, rattling off a host of dates on Mondays and Thursdays for the Senate to convene in those pro forma sessions.
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, was presiding over the Senate at the time.
“Without objection?” asked Moreno of the body when Thune concluded.
There was none.
INSIDE THE SENATE’S CHAOTIC ALL-NIGHTER THAT LEFT TRUMP’S SAVE AMERICA ACT ON THE SHELF
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks during a news conference following the Senate Republican policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, March 11, 2025.(Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
In other words, the Senate would soon depart Washington. There would be no August debate about the SAVE America Act. The Senate would simply meet for abbreviated sessions over the next few weeks.
And shortly before 5 a.m., Thune requested the following from the floor:
“Madam President, I ask unanimous consent when the Senate adjourns on Thursday, Sept. 10, it stand adjourned until 3 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 14. And following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved and the Morning Hour be deemed expired,” asked Thune.
The South Dakota Republican then threw in some more boilerplate, parliamentary language, to tee up a test vote on an unresolved cryptocurrency regulation bill for the afternoon of Tuesday, Sept. 15.
“Without objection,” said Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wy., who was presiding over the Senate at that ungodly hour.
Thune paused briefly. But no one said boo from the floor.
That’s because the chamber was bereft of senators — except for Thune and Lummis. Everyone bailed and was heading for the airport.
“Madam President, if there’s no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order,” Thune asked.
“The Senate stands adjourned until 10 a.m. ET on Monday,” declared Lummis, rapping the Senate’s unique hourglass shaped gavel on the dais.
No objection. No roll call vote.
The Senate was done.
So let me filet this for you.
The Senate conducts much of its business via “unanimous consent.” The Senate is a body of equals. All 100 senators wield nearly the same power. The Senate relies on “unanimous consent,” the blessing of all 100 members, to conduct quotidian tasks, like going in and out of session or what time to meet. The Senate occasionally approves bills — sometimes even big ones — by unanimous consent if all senators agree.
But unanimous consent is just that. All 100 members must be on the same page. And if you have 99 senators in agreement and one holdout, well, that’s not unanimous consent.
The Senate Chamber with Sen. Dave McCormick as the presiding officer.(Fox News)
All it takes is the objection of a solitary member to sidetrack a “unanimous consent” request on the floor. And note that despite the advocacy by some Republican senators for the body to remain in session during August, no one lodged an objection.
That’s because Thune pre-baked a series of unanimous consent requests offstage before he came to the floor.
Late in the evening of Friday, Aug. 7, Thune ran what’s called a “hotline” in the Senate. He proposed a series of votes to confirm Blanche, OK Russia sanctions and consider a few other items. If any senator had a problem with Thune’s hotline, they should let leadership know before 11:30 p.m. that night. Otherwise, Thune would go to the floor and “propound” the unanimous consent request for the upcoming vote sequence. Thune would also propound a unanimous consent request for what the Senate would address when members returned in September,
This package included a plan for those aforementioned pro forma sessions. And, for the Senate to hold off on any votes until Monday, night, Sept. 14. Thune also locked in the procedural vote on the cryptocurrency measure for Sept. 15.
Anyone could have objected offstage.
They didn’t. That would have scuttled the entire enterprise.
Anyone could have objected on the Senate floor when Thune made the unanimous consent requests in real time. That didn’t happen either. That’s why both Moreno and Lummis asked the body if there was “an objection.” Or, they declared “without objection, so ordered.”
However, those pushing for the Senate to remain in session to debate the SAVE America Act did manage a minor victory. Part of Thune’s unanimous consent request at 2:07 a.m. that Saturday included a test vote on a voter ID bill pushed by Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio. This package addressed some of the provisions desired by Trump. It was also helpful to Husted, who faces a tough election this fall against former Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio. And, the test vote would get senators on the record voting for or against voter ID.
All Republican senators voted yes. All Democratic senators voted no. Republicans will likely deploy this roll call vote against their Democratic colleagues this fall.
The vote secured more than a simple majority in the Senate. But here’s the catch: part of Thune’s unanimous consent request — pre-agreed to by all 100 senators — dictated that the test vote on the Husted measure was subject to a 60 vote threshold. Republicans only command 53 votes in the Senate. So without Democratic assistance, the Husted plan was doomed from the start.
So the Senate is long gone. And will continue to be gone for a few weeks.
This wasn’t because of some backroom plan cooked up by Thune. This wasn’t just Thune going against the wishes of conservative senators who suggested the Senate remain in session. This wasn’t just Thune working against the president.
Those unanimous consent requests reflected the will of all 100 senators. Anyone on either side could have blocked the proposals. But they didn’t.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
And when someone asks why the Senate didn’t remain in session this month to address the SAVE America Act, you can tell them that all 100 senators agreed to call it quits and go home at 4:57 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 8.
Chad Pergram currently serves as Chief Congressional Correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.