Senate Republicans splinter over SAVE America Act’s path as Trump calls for more revisions

WASHINGTON — The outlook for President Donald Trump’s SAVE America Act grew bleaker Monday as divisions deepened among Senate Republicans over how to pass it and whether it is possible to overcome Democratic opposition.

Some say they are confident that a “parliamentary filibuster” under the current rules could lead to passage of the sweeping election overhaul bill, even if it hasn’t worked before. Another Republican senator proposed a different path with less support. And the Senate’s top Republican stressed that the path forward is “unclear” because the 60-vote rule could be too difficult to overcome.

“Having studied it and researched it pretty thoroughly, you have to show me how ultimately this prevails and succeeds. Because I think what was promised was that ultimately it would achieve an outcome. And I have a very hard time seeing that based on actual past experience,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters. “We can’t find any law in history that has been passed this way.”

Meanwhile, Trump spoke with House Republicans in Florida and called for new provisions to be added to the bill — which currently includes new requirements for voter ID and proof of citizenship, as well as voter selection through a Department of Homeland Security database — to largely ban mail-in voting, in addition to unrelated restrictions on transgender athletes and gender-affirming treatment for minors.

He said he spoke to Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, the bill’s sponsor, about potential changes.

“It’s what we call ‘the best of Trump.’ Something should also be added to this bill. And so what I asked Mike was to draw a new one with these few elements added and we went for gold. Let’s not just get one, like a voter ID card,” Trump said, predicting that if the bill passed, Democrats wouldn’t win elections for half a century. “It’s priority No. 1.”

Lee has been a staunch advocate of the “talking filibuster” and has mobilized an online army of conservative activists to try to pressure the Senate to go for it.

“I’m willing to try that too,” said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. “I know the majority leader isn’t excited about this. He’d have to run the floor, but I’m more than willing to try.”

“I know it would be tedious,” Hawley added.

When asked if the pressure to act was increasing, Thune said “a lot of it” came from “the paid influencer ecosystem.”

Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., who is running for reelection this year with Trump’s support, said the first procedural vote on the bill would show where each senator stands.

“I think it’s very helpful to let the American people know who supports him and who doesn’t,” Rounds said Monday. “After that, I think talking about the filibuster is a lot harder than some people think.”

Meanwhile, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., suggested an alternative option: using the filibuster-proof “reconciliation” process to eliminate Democrats and approve the SAVE America Act. This path, however, is limited to tax and spending, as previous electoral bills have been declared invalid below the simple majority threshold.

“When I raise this issue, many say, well, I’ll never survive a Byrd bath and the Budget Control Act,” Kennedy said, referring to the limitations of the budget process. “It all depends on the parliamentarian and her team, and to get something through a Byrd bath, you have to do your homework, do your research, look for precedents. »

It’s a difficult puzzle for Thune, one that could lead to failure on a top Trump priority. He faces a daily torrent of pressure from conservatives on social media, many of whom are convinced that the “talking filibuster” is achievable if Republicans get behind it.

And he’s trying to manage his conference.

“I got a text message from Senator Thune last night,” Kennedy told reporters, “saying we’re going to spend a lot of time this week talking about the SAVE Act, talking about divisions and talking about timing and procedure.”

On social media, Trump threatened to refuse to sign any bill until the SAVE America Act became law.

“I agree with him,” said Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla. “This is the most important thing.”

But the revisions demanded by Trump include provisions largely banning mail-in ballots, which do not have unified support among Republicans. And the new transgender provisions risk undermining the party’s message that this is an elections-focused bill. Still, any change would mean the House would have to pass the legislation a third time, after having had to pass it a second time recently following Trump’s previous demands for changes.

“We added two things to it: no men in women’s sports and no transgender mutilation of our children,” Trump said Monday.

Asked by NBC News about the possibility of ending the filibuster, as he called it, Trump was skeptical of the possibility, saying: “So to get it, you’re going to need Democratic votes.”

Spokespeople for House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., did not immediately respond when asked Monday whether he plans to revise the bill and pass a new version in the House.

Thune said that might be a good idea.

“The House, obviously, should do it — these are all things that were not part of what they sent us here,” Thune told NBC News, adding, “And so it would probably make sense for them to send another version.”