Trump's Speech Is Unlikely to Rescue the SAVE Act

President Trump used his prime-time address Thursday night to once again push Congress to pass his favored voting bill, but the Washington Post reports that the math still looks all but impossible. Republicans don't have the votes to overcome a filibuster on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would tighten voter ID and citizenship requirements, and Trump's speech did not sway any Democrats. "When it comes to the SAVE Act, the courts have rejected it, Congress has rejected it, even members of your own party have rejected it—give it up," said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in a statement. "The SAVE Act isn't going anywhere. Period."

The additional problem for Republicans is that Trump's push is now colliding with the party's plans to avoid a shutdown fight, reports Politico. House Speaker Mike Johnson has been promoting a "clean" stopgap funding bill that omits the SAVE Act and would keep the government open well ahead of the Sept. 30 deadline. Trump's renewed demand threatens to complicate that strategy by pressuring Republicans to attach the election measure—guaranteeing Democratic opposition. GOP leaders are also eyeing a narrower version of the plan in a party-line budget bill, but even that faces headwinds: Retiring GOP Sen. Thom Tillis vowed to use "every device" to slow any attempt to revive what he called a "failed" effort to "confuse this election," per the Hill.