President Donald Trump on Wednesday canceled an event to sign into law a bipartisan bill that the White House previously called “one of the most significant pieces of housing affordability legislation in American history.”
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“Today’s Housing News Conference and Signing is hereby cancelled until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE AMERICA ACT, which I consider to be a National Emergency,” Trump posted on social media.
The move came as a surprise to both Democrats and Republicans alike, especially after the White House lent its support to the housing bill.
Before Trump canceled the event, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the bill signing would be “another promise made, promise kept” by the Trump administration.
“President Trump promised to lower housing costs, and he is delivering, making it easier for every family to achieve the American Dream of homeownership,” she posted on social media.
The bill includes measures to increase the housing supply and make homes more affordable.
While the bipartisan housing bill saw overwhelming support in Congress, the same can’t be said of the SAVE America Act.
What Would the SAVE America Act Do?
The bill would require photo identification to vote in federal elections and documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote. It would also require absentee voters to submit a copy of their identification document with their ballot.
The White House states that the “President is calling on Republicans and Democrats to pass the SAVE America Act. Requirement for Voter I.D. to vote should be something that NO American should oppose. If you want to register to vote in the United States, you have to be a citizen in the United States.”
Citizenship is already a requirement to vote, and instances of non-citizens voting in federal elections are rare, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center. Yet Republicans have found success politicizing the issue and demanding reform.
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The House passed the bill in a 218-213 vote in February, with just one Democrat joining Republicans to support the measure. Democrats argue that the bill is an effort to suppress the vote.
Does the SAVE America Act Have Enough Support in the Senate to Pass?
The bill is unlikely to get the 60-vote, filibuster-proof majority needed to pass. Similar measures have passed the House before only to die in the Senate. Trump is aware of this and on Wednesday urged Republicans to try another route: End the filibuster and approve the bill.
“Get the bad Republicans to approve it or, better yet, Terminate the Filibuster and approve it, AND EVERYTHING ELSE REPUBLICANS HAVE EVER DREAMED OF,” he posted on social media.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune has repeatedly dismissed Trump’s idea to end the filibuster and allow a simple majority vote to pass legislation. Such a step would allow Trump to streamline many of his controversial policies, but it would also allow Democrats to do the same if they came into power.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said at a Wednesday press briefing that he told Trump he is aiming to push through the SAVE America Act in a third budget reconciliation bill. Such bills require a simple majority in the Senate, meaning Republicans could pass it with only GOP support. But they are also strictly limited to budgetary matters, and the Senate parliamentarian has already ruled the measure does not meet the requirement.
“I talked the president through that in detail this morning, as I have in the past, and he said, ‘Can we do it?’ I said, ‘We can, if the Republicans will stand together,’” Johnson said.
It’s unclear if Republicans will be able to unify over the issue, and one is already saying she won’t be “drinking the Kool-Aid.”
“Save America Act cannot be done in reconciliation,” Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida posted on social media. “Why would the same Senate that is blocking voter ID all of a sudden magically change their mind to overrule the parliamentarian? Not happening.”
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