A looming battle over election integrity is brewing in Washington as Republicans push to include a controversial voter ID bill in a critical spending bill. The bill, known as the ‘SAVE Act’, would require proof of citizenship for voter registration and has been championed by conservative Republicans, including former President Donald Trump.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has proposed a six-month spending patch that would keep current fiscal year spending levels steady through March. This proposal also includes the SAVE Act, a move that has been met with resistance from Democrats.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has stated that the spending bill must be passed in a bipartisan manner and that the SAVE Act’s inclusion would be a nonstarter for Democrats. He argues that the bill is unnecessary, as it is already illegal for noncitizens to vote in the United States.
The Biden-Harris administration has echoed this sentiment, calling the SAVE Act a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist and based on disproven claims. Proponents of the bill, however, believe that it is necessary to protect the integrity of elections.
The SAVE Act has already passed the House with bipartisan support, with five Democrats joining Republicans in voting in favor. However, this relatively minimal support from Democrats may not be enough to satisfy Schumer’s demand for a bipartisan deal.
The bill has not been voted on in the Senate, and the majority leader is unlikely to schedule a vote. Democrats see the inclusion of the SAVE Act in the spending bill as a ploy to force them to go on record with their position on the bill, which they consider unnecessary.
As the deadline for the spending bill approaches, the inclusion of the SAVE Act has become a major point of contention between the two parties. If an agreement cannot be reached, the government could face a partial shutdown at the end of the month.
