GOP Leadership Must Stop the Failure Theater and Pass the SAVE America Act

Despite the fact that large supermajorities of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents support the policies in the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (the SAVE America Act), the bill looks set to die on the Senate floor this week, barring a change in course from Senate Republican leadership – namely Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD). Allowing the bill to fail could not only prove catastrophic for election integrity nationwide, but also decimate Republican voter enthusiasm heading into the midterms.

The SAVE America Act, as it currently stands, has several key provisions, including:

• Requiring documentary proof of U.S. citizenship – such as a passport or birth certificate – when registering to vote in federal elections.
• Mandating that states verify citizenship status using available government databases and removing noncitizens from voter rolls.
• Requiring in-person presentation of citizenship documentation when registering or updating voter registration information.
• Establishing penalties for election officials who knowingly register ineligible voters and strengthening enforcement of federal voter eligibility laws.

Polls show that more than 80 percent of Americans – including the vast majority of Democrat voters – approve of requiring a photo ID to vote, with similarly large majorities supporting the other policies in the bill. But elected Democrats oppose these safeguards, arguing that they will somehow disenfranchise eligible voters.

Thune himself has called the SAVE America Act “a package of commonsense policies – the kind of commonsense policies that should get an automatic ‘yes’ vote from literally every member of this body.” But Thune has thus far refused to pursue the only strategy that could allow the bill to pass.

Like most legislation, the SAVE America Act needs 60 votes in the Senate to overcome the filibuster rule. But as the Majority Leader, Thune decides if and when to invoke cloture (i.e. end debate on a bill that can’t garner 60 votes).

Consequently, he has the power to force the Democrats to endure a “talking filibuster.” Instead of allowing Democrats to simply block the bill indefinitely, they would be required to physically stand on the Senate floor and give speeches to delay final passage.

As Sen. Thune himself said on Thursday, “I can really see only two reasons for Democrats opposing this legislation: Either Democrats are just reflexively opposing this proposal because it originated from Republicans or Democrats believe that there are in fact people out there voting illegally and that it’s benefiting Democrats.” Nonetheless, he seems oddly reluctant to force them to stand in the well of the Senate, face the C-SPAN cameras, and coherently explain their opposition to a bill that is wildly popular with the American people they serve.

Forcing a talking filibuster would not, as has been inaccurately reported by the corporate “news” media, require Thune to change any Senate rules. As Heritage Action explains, “The process for initiating a talking filibuster is well within bounds and was the primary tool for ending Senate debate for more than a century.” The talking filibuster is the filibuster. The cloture rule was created in the 20th century, and its latest iteration was written by the Democrats in 1975.

Heritage Action goes on to imply that the cloture rule has become something of a crutch for lazy senators:

“Today’s Senate operates as if cloture is the only way, under the rules, to end debate and move to a vote—this ignores the more than 100 years during which they operated without it. Pre-cloture unlimited debate is still an option, and though it is no easy feat, Senate Republicans could force Democrats to oppose bills not by voting down cloture, but by holding the floor and debating the bill under the rules of a talking filibuster.”

The “lazy senator” theory is certainly the view of Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), the Senate’s primary sponsor of the SAVE America Act. Last week he posted the following on social media: “The convenience of senators has become the enemy of liberty and good government… We must make filibustering senators speak – even through long nights, weekends, and long-scheduled recesses. We’ve become addicted to easy, predictable schedules.” Lee believes that a failure to pass this bill will irreparably undermine the trust GOP voters placed in the party.

Like President Trump, Lee believes that restoring election integrity is the Alpha and Omega of voter confidence in our system of government. As Trump put it on Truth Social, “It supersedes everything else.” He was clearly talking to Thune.

Yet the Majority Leader still insisted on wrapping up a housing bill championed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) before he finally deigned to address the SAVE America Act. Perhaps the most accurate description of Thune’s Senate leadership was recently offered by Roger Kimball in the Spectator:

“Under the leadership of John Thune, the Senate has been conspicuously unhelpful to the president and his agenda. Indeed, it is not too much to say that, under Thune, the Senate has become a graveyard for Trump-backed legislation passed by the House. Why is that? Inquiring minds want to know. Could it possibly be that Senator Thune is an anti-MAGA hack whose true allegiance is with the business-as-usual deep state?”

President Trump is so frustrated by Thune that he issued this ultimatum: “I, as President, will not sign other Bills until [the SAVE America Act] is passed.” In the House, where the bill was passed a month ago, several GOP representatives have said they will vote “No” on all Senate-passed legislation until the upper chamber passes the bill. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), for example, wrote the following on social media: “The Senate will no longer have legislation passed until the SAVE America Act is passed and on the President’s desk.”

During his Thursday announcement, Thune himself said, “Americans overwhelmingly agree that voters should have to show ID at the polls. Eighty-three percent of Americans – 83 percent – in an August 2025 poll supported requiring photo ID at the polls for all voters. That includes 71 percent of Democrats, 76 percent of Black Americans, 77 percent of Asian Americans, and 82 percent of Hispanic Americans.” So, the voters want the SAVE America Act passed, the GOP House majority has already passed it, and President Trump wants to sign it into law.

Everyone wants this bill passed except for the Democrats and a few Senate Republicans. All of which brings us back to the inability or unwillingness of Thune to wring enough votes from the 53-47 Republican majority in the Senate to foist a talking filibuster on the Democrats. Thune either can’t control his members or isn’t willing to do so. No matter which is true, the American people deserve a Senate Majority Leader who can deliver on some of the few policies that 80+ percent of the country agrees on.

If the SAVE America Act dies in the Senate, the consequences will be dire for Republicans. The voters who reelected President Trump in 2024, while giving the GOP control of both houses of Congress, expected results. The President has devoted enormous energy to delivering wins for his voters and has had significant successes.

The Republican Congress, however, has been far less productive outside of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year. If the SAVE America Act goes down, it is entirely likely that much of the MAGA coalition will sit out the midterms, and the door will be left wide open for mass voter fraud. It’s time for Senate Republicans to do what the American people elected them to do.

David Catron is a Senior Editor at the American Spectator. His writing has also appeared in PJ Media, the American Thinker, the Providence Journal, the Catholic Exchange and a variety of other publications.