President Donald Trump escalated his push for election integrity legislation Monday, calling on Senate Majority Leader John Thune to remove the Senate parliamentarian after the SAVE America Act was blocked for the second consecutive time last week.
“Senate Majority Leader John Thune should immediately fire the parliamentarian, who treats Republicans and everything they stand for horribly!” Trump posted on Truth Social, targeting Elizabeth MacDonough, the nonpartisan official who rules on whether legislation qualifies for expedited budget procedures.
The post came four days after four Senate Republicans again joined Democrats to defeat the measure. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina provided the decisive votes to block the bill.
The Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act would require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections and photo identification to cast a ballot.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) had attached the legislation as an amendment to a nearly $70 billion budget reconciliation package intended to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol operations. The amendment required at least 60 votes to advance; it fell short of that threshold by a wide margin.
“There’s no other reason to say you don’t have to have an ID. It just makes cheating easier,” Graham said on the Senate floor Thursday. “Who wants a noncitizen voting in our election? If you’re against that, that makes me wonder.”
Democrats countered that federal law already prohibits noncitizens from voting in U.S. elections. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) said the measure was an attempt to “take over elections” and restrict mail-in voting. “Current safeguards are working,” Padilla said. “And yes, it is already unlawful for non-citizens to vote in the United States.”
The Senate parliamentarian holds significant sway over the reconciliation process. MacDonough determines whether legislation qualifies to move through the budget procedure, which allows bills to clear the Senate with a simple majority rather than the 60 votes required to break a filibuster. Republicans have attempted twice to attach the SAVE Act to reconciliation packages, and both times the same four senators have voted against it.
Thune launched a “talking filibuster” on the legislation earlier this year. He had not responded publicly to Trump’s demand as of Monday evening.
The parliamentarian serves at the pleasure of the majority leader and can be removed at any time. The position carries no term limits.
