U.S. Sen. John Thune, of South Dakota, is talking about his race to become the next Republican leader in the Senate.

Sen. Thune took questions, Monday, from the Dakota Valley Business Council, during a stop in North Sioux City. Many questions focused on Thune’s campaign to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell as leader of the Senate Republican Conference.

Thune said he wants to bring solutions-driven ideas to the leadership position. That’s something he thinks folks in the Midwest understand. Thune says he would “democratize” the conference, and bring a new leadership style that differs from McConnell’s.

“You know, you can file a protest, you can make a point, but sometimes you want to make a solution, you want to make a law, you want to get something done,” said Thune.

Right now, Thune is in the “number two” position in the conference as “minority whip,” though the top job is coming open because McConnell isn’t seeking re-election.

Thune said he’s running against Sen. John Cornyn of Texas

According to Senate.gov, leaders of the two parties, especially whichever party controls the majority of Senate seats, play “an important role” in setting the legislative agenda, organizing committees and determining how action proceeds on the Senate floor.

”This is one of those pivot points where you can get a new generation of leadership, slightly different leadership style. And, I think the way I talked about it here today, in my view, makes sense,” said Thune.

Thune also touched on his bill to “lightly” regulate the use of artificial intelligence.

He says the growth of AI could greatly help the business community but more needs to be done to identify which content is generated from AI.

Under his proposal, for example, Thune says creators would be required to identify if a piece of content was AI-generated, potentially with a watermark or other disclaimer. He also says consumers should be informed if AI is used to check their credit, for example