When the budget legislation was working its way through Congress, Donald Trump told Republicans to back off the SAVE Act and pass the legislation as it was.
Now that the spending bill is on the books, Trump is calling on the GOP to push the SAVE Act through.
The revamped legislation just passed its first hurdle, and now it is time we get Democrats on record for something that more than 80% of the American people, including more than 70% of Democrats, support.
Trump has always supported voter ID, but he knew it would have locked up the spending bill, so he had them remove it.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) promised House Republicans he would put the legislation on the floor if they could get it through the House.
Trump has now asked the GOP to push the legislation forward, and Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) was happy to oblige.
As the bill was being debated in committee, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) stated, “What they’re trying to do here is the same thing that was done in the South for decades to prevent people of color from voting. This is vicious and nasty. We’re not reviving Jim Crow all over the country.”
The outrage is now flowing among the left, and American Progress was among the first to blast the legislation.
In part, the organization stated, “The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act has been reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. This legislation would require all Americans to prove their citizenship status by presenting documentation—in person—when registering to vote or updating their voter registration information.”
The statement continued, “Specifically, the legislation would require the vast majority of Americans to rely on a passport or birth certificate to prove their citizenship."
These documents are not hard to get, yet the left has not only called this voter suppression, but now they are saying that Republicans are trying to make it harder for women to vote if they are married. It’s ludicrous.
The bill managed to pass its first hurdle, and it has already come out of committee, with a full vote expected on the House floor at some point today.
The legislation is being led by Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, with Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) taking it up in the Senate.
Roy stated, "[Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.] will take it up. The only question is, will he take it up in an environment where it can pass? My view is that the majority leader can and should. I'm not afraid of amendment votes…we should table all their amendments, force them to run through all their speaking, make them take the floor and filibuster."
Even if this fails, it forces Democrats to go on the record on voter ID, something the overwhelming majority of Americans support. This is how the GOP starts to win back voters. If this legislation fails, they need to start immediately pounding ads about how Democrats are pushing their personal agendas rather than the will of We the People.
