Trump Is Right to Hold Congress Hostage Until It Passes the SAVE America Act
The ultimatum forces Congress to prioritize proof of citizenship and voter ID
Election integrity remains the most pressing issue that separates most voters from the Democratic Party. A February Harvard CAPS-Harris poll found 81 percent of Americans support requiring voter ID. This aligns with repeated polling showing 75–80 percent of the public—including most registered Democrats—support the Republican position on this issue.
Last month, the House of Representatives passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, also known as the SAVE America Act. It requires proof of citizenship—such as a passport, birth certificate, or REAL ID-compliant driver’s license—for federal elections. The commonsense measure would make it extremely difficult for non-citizens and other ineligible voters to slip through the cracks and cheat the electoral system.
This issue is not controversial with voters, yet Democrat Senators have refused to budge in their opposition to it.
President Donald Trump has had enough. On March 10, he vowed not to sign any bill until Congress sends the SAVE America Act to his desk. On Truth Social, he wrote that the bill “supersedes everything else,” adding in all caps, “IT MUST GO TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE.”
“I can really only see two reasons for Democrats opposing this legislation,” Sen. Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said in his announcement on March 12 that he would bring the bill to the floor. “Either Democrats are just reflexively opposing this proposal because it originated from Republicans or Democrats believe there are, in fact, people out there voting illegally, and that it’s benefitting Democrats.”
The bill needs 60 votes to invoke cloture and pass the bill, a feat made impossible without winning over at least seven Democrats.
As Restoration News has noted, there are enough moderate Senate Democrats to accomplish this. But getting their votes requires mobilizing the American people—not just Republican voters—behind the bill. Until the voter ID debate becomes unignorable to the masses, these not-so-radical Democrats will never break party rank.
The plan Trump and his pro-election integrity base have pushed is for Thune to trap Democrats into a talking filibuster. This would force them to defend their position day and night until they give up and let the bill pass. It would also require Republicans to remain present or nearby to defeat any amendments Democrats offer.
Many Republican Senators oppose Trump’s strategy of pushing the SAVE Act “to the front of the line” because that means agencies don’t get funded and other Republican priorities stall.
But these sacrifices are worth making for two reasons.
First, if Democrats cave, which is not out of the question, Americans receive something that is a clear 80/20 issue that favors Republicans. This gives Trump’s base a shot in the arm to vote this November in addition to precluding any possible electoral shenanigans that could favor Democrats.
Secondly, if Democrats stand on principle and decide to fight it out, they will provide Republicans unlimited clips of them opposing a bill that is overwhelmingly popular with the American people. For instance, the GOP’s donor arsenal could easily tear apart their ludicrous claims that the bill will disenfranchise married women. Letting the Democrats make fools of themselves until the Senate’s March 30 recess with the understanding that they will have to go right back to it when they return is not a scenario they want.
Voters will not be impressed with Democrats holding off funding the Department of Homeland Security—which will further increase airport wait times—just to block citizenship verification at the polls.
In addition to holding future legislation hostage, Trump has so far withheld his endorsement of incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who enjoys the support of most of Republican Senate colleagues but faces a fierce run-off primary battle against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Interestingly, Cornyn recently reversed his position on forcing a filibuster over the bill.
Trump's stance is a necessary defense against Democrats’ war on citizenship-only voting and Republicans’ penchant for ignoring their base in favor of their donors’ concerns.
By forcing Democrats to deny their constituent bureaucrats a paycheck indefinitely or cave, Trump holds the cards. Likewise, by refusing to sign anything else before the SAVE Act, he forces Republicans to forego their donors’ priorities.
Thune has scheduled a vote on the bill for this week. But he doesn’t plan to force a talking filibuster. He’s banking on voters blaming Democrats for not crossing over and voting for it. But if Trump holds to his threat to refuse to sign anything else until this passes, Thune will eventually have no choice.
The SAVE America Act fight is a referendum on whether Trump can force Republican Senators to meet their voters’ demand to ensure American elections are decided by Americans. Democrats face an equally uncomfortable choice—defend a position that roughly 80 percent of the public opposes heading into the midterm elections or hand Trump a signature victory on election integrity. Either outcome works in Republicans' favor, which is precisely why Trump is right to issue his ultimatum to the Senate that this gets signed into law or nothing does. Hopefully he holds the line.
MORE ELECTION INTEGRITY NEWS:
EXCLUSIVE: How the Voter Reference Foundation Provides Election Transparency
NEWS: DOJ Suing Arizona for Hiding Voter Data
MORE COVERAGE: WISCONSIN: Democrats are Out of Touch with Their Own Base on Voter ID
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