Senate Republicans, led by Majority Leader John Thune, plan a floor fight this week on the doomed Trump-backed SAVE America Act, also known as the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility Act, starting with a procedural vote Tuesday that requires a simple majority, possibly requiring VP JD Vance to break a tie. Thune rejects a talking filibuster due to insufficient GOP support, saying, “it’s about the math.”
The strategy aims to force Democrats on record opposing it and put RINOs like Sens. Thom Tillis and Lisa Murkowski, who oppose it, in the spotlight. Bringing it to the floor will force RINOs to take an open side, potentially pressuring them to vote for it amid base backlash and midterm threats. Democrats vow to block it entirely.
Laying out his view of the situation, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) asserted, “It’s about the math. And I’m, for better or worse, the one who has to be a clear-eyed realist about what we can achieve here. And so we’ll continue to convey that. And I think that we’re going to have the fight on the floor. We’re going to vote on this.”
“Democrats will not let Donald Trump ram this bill through the Senate. Not this week, not ever. And Democrats are going to make sure the American people have their chance to deliver their verdict at the elections this fall,” whined Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
Trying to get this popular bill across the finish line, Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) said, “We don’t have the votes for the talking filibuster right now. We just got to, you know, we got to look at every way we can try to pass it,” laying out his plan.
Unpopular RINO Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), vowed to “do everything I can to prevent it from even moving forward, caliming that her prefers “incentivized states to adopt voter ID” and the additional changes “doesn’t sound like we’re letting the people at the tip of the spear — that’s these people running for re-election — define what we should be voting on next week.”
Another RINO, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), came out in opposition to “one-size-fits-all mandates from Washington, D.C., seldom work in places like Alaska.” She also argued against, “Imposing new federal requirements now, when states are deep into their preparations, would negatively impact election integrity by forcing election officials to scramble to adhere to new policies, likely without the necessary resources.” — Sen. Lisa Murkowski
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Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) claimed the bill was “needlessly complicated,” adding, “I have said it’s not Jim Crow, and it’s not extreme things, but mail-in voting is absolutely secure. Some of the best examples in the country are red states like Florida and Ohio.”
Reacting to this statement, one commentator said, “If Senator Fetterman does NOT support the SAVE America Act, I promise Pennsylvania will do everything within its power — peacefully — to defeat him in 2028. @SenFettermanPA.” Agreeing another stated, “Fetterman is just another useless politician when it matters! He is all talk when it’s the easy way out. Thune is a disgrace! Pass the Save America Act Now! Primary any senator that votes no!”
Watch President Trump comment on the popularity of the SAVE America Act here: