Back to Markets
Stocks● Neutral
Trump Puts Thune in Crosshairs Over SAVE Act Stall
Trump's frustration with Thune over the stalled SAVE Act masks a math problem: 53 Republican votes, 60 needed. The FISA linkage raises the stakes. A denied claim from Thune's office.
Continue with
Donald Trump has decided Senate Majority Leader John Thune is the obstacle. The SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and mandate voter ID at polling places, passed the House in February. Thune has not been able to push it through the Senate. Trump now wants to make Thune pay.
The 60-Vote Math
The real obstacle is not Thune's willingness. A filibuster requires 60 votes. Republicans hold 53 seats. No Democrat has backed the bill. The math does not change regardless of who leads the chamber.
Trump tied the SAVE Act to FISA Section 702 reauthorization, the surveillance authority that expired for the first time since 2008. "I will not approve FISA without THE SAVE AMERICA ACT going along with it," he posted on Truth Social. That turns a policy disagreement into a hostage standoff.
Thune told reporters the president "has his own mind, makes his own decisions. So do we." Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said Thune is "telling the president the truth." The problem is Trump "doesn't like hearing that when it frustrates what he wants to do," Cornyn told the Journal.