It’s official. The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act will indeed be a part of the continuing resolution (CR), which Speaker Mike Johnson introduced on Friday in a 46-page proposal to fund the U.S. government through the 2024 election. And the other side of the aisle is speaking out loudly in opposition to it.
via The Hill:
The 46-page plan would keep the government funded into March 2025, while tacking on language for stricter proof-of-citizenship requirements for voting, setting the stage for a budget showdown with Senate Democrats later this month.
Readers might recall that the SAVE Act election security measure was passed by Republicans in the lower chamber in early July, with the help of some swing-state Democrats. Yet, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer complained in a recent interview that it’s Johnson and the Republicans who want to push through a one-party plan–something my colleague Mike Miller pointed out just isn’t so:
During an interview with ABC News on Wednesday, Schumer (D-NY) said that the only way to keep the government funded is through a bipartisan bill, which is correct. But House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is expected to propose a stopgap funding measure to fund the government until spring that would include new rules requiring proof of citizenship to vote — a no-go for Chucky.
….
Um, Chuck? The House passed a nationwide proof of citizenship bill — the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act — with a 221-198 vote on July 10, with 216 Republicans and five Democrats voting for its passage.
Read More:
Obvious Much, Chuck? Schumer Refuses to Say Why He Opposes Proof of Citizenship to Vote
With Vote on SAVE Act, House Dems Reveal Their Stance on Noncitizen Voting
Johnson (R-LA) explained the move in remarks after the plan’s release:
Today, House Republicans are taking a critically important step to keep the federal government funded and to secure our federal election process.
Congress has a responsibility to do both, and we must ensure that only American citizens can decide American elections.
Democrats reacted in a joint statement from Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-WA) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), writing that “avoiding a government shutdown requires bipartisanship, not a bill drawn up by one party.”
It continued:
“Speaker Johnson is making the same mistake as former Speaker McCarthy did a year ago, by wasting precious time catering to the hard MAGA right. This tactic didn’t work last September and it will not work this year either. The House Republican funding proposal is an ominous case of déjà vu.”
Then they leveled a threat of a shutdown:
“If Speaker Johnson drives House Republicans down this highly partisan path, the odds of a shutdown go way up, and Americans will know that the responsibility of a shutdown will be on the House Republicans’ hands.”
Here’s what we know so far about what’s in the Republicans’ CR plan:
The bill introduced Friday also includes funds for a number of other items, including billions of dollars for disaster relief, about $2 billion for “shipbuilding and conversion” for the Navy, and payments to the family and heirs of late congressional members. That covers payments of $174,000, the amount of the annual salary for congressional members, to the widows of Reps. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) and Donald Payne Jr. (D-N.J.), as well as the heirs at law of Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas).
President Joe Biden has promised to veto any bill that crosses his desk containing the SAVE Act. As this is a developing story, RedState will provide updates as they become available.
Related:
There’s No Excuse to Not Pass the SAVE Act
