President Donald Trump has added two new demands for Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, legislation intended to secure election integrity nationwide.
The SAVE America Act, led by Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) and Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), would require proof of citizenship and voter identification in order to register to vote.
Trump included those two points in his post, but he also included a third voting-related point about prohibiting mail-in ballots except for those who suffer from an illness or disability, serve in the military, or travel at the time of voting. The SAVE America Act currently lacks a provision for banning mail-in voting, as that would likely ostracize some Republicans.
The bill also requires states to remove noncitizens from existing voter rolls, an item that Trump did not include in his latest checklist of demands.
The legislation is an edited version of the SAVE Act, which has passed the House twice but has been stalled in the Senate, as it has been unable to pass the 60-vote filibuster threshold before a final vote.
There are 53 Republicans in the Senate, meaning some Democrats would have to support the measure.
The delay in passing the SAVE America Act prompted Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to suggest he potentially exit his race against Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) in exchange for the Senate GOP getting the legislation across the finish line.
PAXTON OFFERS TO DROP PRIMARY CHALLENGE TO CORNYN IF SENATE PASSES SAVE ACT
The offer comes two days after the Texas Senate primary this week. Because neither Paxton nor Cornyn passed the 50% voting threshold, they will face off again in the May 26 runoff election.
Trump is expected to endorse Cornyn over Paxton, but the president has not yet announced his decision. A day after the primary, Trump teased his endorsement would come “soon.”
