It’s that time of year again. The federal government insists that they’re on the verge of running out of money, so the House of Representatives must pass a stopgap spending measure to fund it. This year, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) has added an incentive to the mix — H.R. 8281, the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, or SAVE Act, which is intended to ensure that only United States citizens are allowed to vote.
The SAVE Act would mandate that all states require proof of U.S. citizenship when registering voters. Illegal voters would face stiff penalties, including prison time, if caught.
“Political Theater”
Representative Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) isn’t so enamored with the SAVE Act. In fact, Massie refers to it as “political theater,” all about getting Republicans to pass the continuing resolution (CR) in order to avoid a government shutdown.
“But wait! There’s a bright shiny object on this CR,” Massie said at a House Committee on Rules meeting on Monday. “I’ve never seen one of these. I have never seen a bright shiny object attached to one of these must-pass bills. Oh, wait, no … there always is a bright shiny object. A bauble, if you will — a little something to get excited about.”
The Kentucky representative further showed his disdain on X:
I refuse to be a thespian in the Speaker’s failure theater. The 6 month continuing resolution with the SAVE Act attached is an insult to Americans’ intelligence. The CR doesn’t cut spending, and the shiny object attached to it will be dropped like a hot potato before passage.
Massie claimed Johnson would remove the SAVE Act once he got the CR passed:
I hate to break it to the Republicans: You ain’t getting the SAVE Act. It is not going to stay on this bill.
“[It] is political theater, folks,” he concluded. “We all know where it ends up. We’ve seen it. I’ve been here 12 years, I’ve seen it 12 times. I refuse to be a thespian in this failure theater.”
Massie Not Alone
Other Republicans agreed with Massie’s take on the SAVE Act.
“Passing the CR plus SAVE ACT would only be worth it if the CR included the 1% spending cut (which it does not) AND if Speaker Johnson would hold the line in a government shut down and to see SAVE become law. Johnson won’t,” Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X.
Florida Republican Cory Mills added:
FACTS: The SAVE Act passed the House on July 10, 2024, by a vote of 221 to 198 with 216 R and 5 D voting in favor. Don’t let anyone tell you it must be attached to an irresponsible spending resolution. If policy riders work so well then why didn’t we attach H.R. 2 [the] Secure the Border Act to secure [the] border, or H.R. 1 [the Lower Energy Costs] Act for energy dominance?
Johnson Pulls It
Mike Johnson announced he would pull the measure due to the defections among Republicans.
“We’re in the consensus-building business here in Congress with small majorities,” Johnson said.
“We’re having thoughtful conversations, family conversations, within the Republican conference, and I believe we’ll get there,” Johnson said. “People have concerns about all sorts of things. That’s how the process works and sometimes it takes a little more time.”
The White House had announced that the CR with the SAVE Act attached was dead on arrival.
“Instead of working across the aisle to do their most basic job and deliver for the American people by keeping the government open and providing emergency funding for disasters, House Republicans are yet again wasting time with extreme policies and a potentially harmful long-term continuing resolution (CR),” a White House press release said.
The U.S. government was never supposed to work like this. They’re supposed to pass a budget and live within it, but they never do. Instead, every year or so the scare tactics come out and we’re told that one side or another will “shut down” the government.
You’d think they’d come up with something new.
