Trump Demanded Proof Of Citizenship At The Booth — Now The GOP-Led Senate Faces A Choice

The SAVE America Act continues to face hurdles toward passage in the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune cautioned against a “talking filibuster” strategy to get the legislation to the president’s desk, according to Punchbowl News.

The legislation would require documentary proof of citizenship at the time of voter registration, as well as a valid ID shown at the ballot box. Legislation in the Senate typically needs 60 votes to overcome a filibuster and advance to final passage. There is even some Republican pushback on the proposal, including from Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK).

On Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom” on Wednesday, Thune said that the Republicans will get “the Democrats on the record” for the proposal, calling it a “losing proposition” for Democrats to go against it, but noted that he would like to see an end to the Department of Homeland Security’s funding lapse first.

In reference to the talking filibuster, he told reporters on Thursday that “you’ve got to have pretty much unanimous support for tabling all amendments. And we’ve looked at, gamed it out what the first week would look like under a scenario like that, and you’d be voting on 30 amendments, and I think you’d probably only have two of the 94 speeches.”

A source familiar with the process argued that lowering the threshold to 51 votes risks giving Democrats more power, including on issues where a small number of Republicans might cross over, like a three-year extension of expired Affordable Care Act subsidies.

“So the question is, is it a good use of time, and what is the probability of success? And I’m all for doing things if there’s a pathway to winning in the end, but I think everybody needs to answer the question, you know, show me, what’s your picture of victory at the end?” the majority leader added.

The SAVE America Act, sponsored by Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), passed the House earlier this month, and Trump explicitly asked that the bill be passed during his State of the Union address on Tuesday.

“And perhaps most importantly, I’m asking you to approve the SAVE America Act, to stop illegal aliens and others who are unpermitted persons from voting in our sacred American elections,” the president said.

“All voters must show voter ID. All voters must show proof of citizenship in order to vote,” he later added.

Many conservatives in the chamber are strongly pushing for the Senate to pass the bill with the talking filibuster.

“We know there will ‘be a vote.’ But this is guaranteed failure theater at a 60 vote threshold without forcing a real (talking) filibuster…,” Roy posted to X.

Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), who is also a major proponent of the bill, wants to see it brought up for a vote even though Congress and the White House are still hammering out a Department of Homeland Security funding deal.

“If the Senate isn’t going to remain focused on Homeland Security funding—something I struggle to understand because DHS is nearly two weeks into a shutdown—we should proceed to the SAVE America Act,” Lee posted. “There will be time later to consider other bills. Those who elected us want us to pass the SAVE America Act now!”

Meanwhile, Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) suggested that they should try to get some Democrats on board with the legislation in order to hit the 60-vote threshold.

“We should be locked in on trying to get eight or nine Democrats to vote yes on the SAVE Act,” the Republican said, according to Semafor. “That’s the most plausible route to success.”

Most Democrats have been extremely opposed to the proposals outlined in the legislation, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer equating it to “Jim Crow 2.0.”

During a Senate floor speech earlier this month, Schumer said that “millions of American citizens—millions—don’t have access to the paperwork that SAVE would require and would be in danger of getting shut out of our democracy.”

“For example, if you’re one of the 50% of Americans who doesn’t have a passport, or if you’re one of the tens of millions of Americans who can’t quickly access your birth certificate, the SAVE Act could, in effect, take away your right to vote,” the New York senator added.