The U.S. Senate departed Washington for its August recess last week without passing the SAVE America Act, a Trump-backed voting bill, after an all-night session that instead produced a middle-of-the-night confirmation vote and a decision to shelve a companion budget resolution.
The SAVE America Act would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to require documentary proof of citizenship, such as a passport, birth certificate or naturalization certificate, at the time of voter registration, and would require photo identification at the time of voting. The bill would also impose criminal penalties on election officials who register applicants without the required documentation, even if those applicants are U.S. citizens, and would allow private lawsuits against officials in similar circumstances, according to an analysis by the Bipartisan Policy Center. The center estimates roughly 12 percent of registered voters currently lack the specific forms of documentation the bill would require.
Republican leaders had hoped to move the bill through the budget reconciliation process, which allows passage with a simple majority rather than the 60 votes typically needed to overcome a Senate filibuster. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), confirmed the decision came at the president’s direction: “We’re, obviously, with the president at his direction. This is what he wants to do.”
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, had signaled he would object to adjournment in order to force a floor vote on the SAVE Act, but he did not follow through, and the Senate proceeded to recess. The overnight session instead centered on the confirmation of Todd Blanche as attorney general, which passed by a 50-49 vote at approximately 3 a.m. after two senators had to be located and brought to the floor to vote.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, (R-SD), said Johnson would continue working on a path forward for the legislation over the recess. “We’ll see,” Thune said. “Ron’s gonna work on it over the break, and his team, and we’ll see what they come up with.” Republicans are expected to attempt another reconciliation push when the Senate returns in September.
The bill’s stall comes roughly two months after a similar SAVE Act measure failed to advance in the Senate in June. In the interim, several states, including Florida, Kansas, Mississippi and South Dakota, have passed their own citizenship-verification voting laws, moving ahead of Congress on the issue at the state level.
