The SAVE America Act has silently been sidelined in the Senate after the GOP-led chamber turned to what it considers more pressing matters related to immigration enforcement and the nation’s foreign spy powers.
Benching the federal voter ID and election bill, a procedural move that removed the proposal from official pending business, was required to advance the GOP’s $70 billion plan last week to end-run Democrats and advance a three-year funding framework for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
But with no commitment to return to the SAVE Act, its state of limbo is what GOP proponents and skeptics alike say is the result of calculated maneuvering by Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and his deputies to satisfy clashing factions. Vulnerable members are insulated from casting a difficult vote to alter the filibuster and approve the House-passed measure, yet Republicans still used more than a month of floor debate ahead of the midterm elections to spotlight a component of President Donald Trump’s agenda that invigorates conservative members and the party’s voting base.
“I think that was by design. But putting it on the floor was not without value,” said Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), who’s advocated nixing the 60-vote threshold to pass it. “We were able to show Democrats are complete hypocrites in terms of being opposed to any form of voter integrity measures. So that was valuable.”
Democrats last month rejected a stand-alone measure to require photo ID for voting.
Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), a centrist critical of the legislation, took a victory lap for keeping the bill at bay and preserving the filibuster while panning those he called “disingenuous” for “telling people that there was ever a path.” Thune has “done a great job of letting members really drive this issue,” he said.
“What could they have gotten out of it? Fundraising, I guess,” Tillis continued. “You ought to go back and take a look at how many fundraising appeals they did that said, ‘I’m a true conservative fighting for you at the expense of other conservatives.’ I don’t like conservatives that start circular firing squads.”
Thune conceded last week the Senate would “pivot off” from the SAVE Act for “pressing issues” like the immigration funding and renewing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, known as FISA, before it expires at the end of the month. Shortly before advancing the immigration measure via a party-line process known as budget reconciliation, four Republicans — Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Tillis — sided with Democrats to reject an amendment that would have included the SAVE Act’s major provisions.
Thune has made no commitment to hold a vote to return to the bill, which would require proof of citizenship for voter registration and a federal standard for presenting IDs at polling locations, among other things.
“We’ll look for an opportunity to get back on it at the appropriate time,” Thune recently told reporters.
Republicans driving the SAVE Act push in the Senate, particularly Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Rick Scott (R-FL), vow that the fight isn’t over. Trump appears to agree, writing in his latest Truth Social post on the subject that he was “asking all Republicans to fight for the following: SAVE AMERICA ACT!”
“America’s Elections are Rigged, Stolen, and a Laughingstock all over the World,” Trump posted Monday. “We are either going to fix them, or we won’t have a Country any longer.”
Scott declined to place blame at Thune’s feet, as the bill’s proponents outside the Senate have done, including Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) and conservative influencers online such as Scott Presler. Scott was adamant that persistent public pressure would make further consideration for the measure unescapable.
“I take leadership with their word that they were — they’re going to — put the effort into trying to get it passed,” Scott said. “I’m going to keep working on it.”
SENATE GOP BALKS AT USING RECONCILIATION TO PASS SAVE AMERICA ACT
In contrast, Johnson, who often sides with Scott and Lee on contentious policy issues that can cause friction with their conservative colleagues, appeared ready to concede defeat.
“This really isn’t the leadership’s call here,” said Johnson, referring to the lack of support to nuke the legislative filibuster with a simple majority vote. “[Thune] doesn’t want to expose members to that, apparently. But again, it’s not his fault that we don’t have the votes to nuke the filibuster.”