Thune says Senate lacks votes to advance SAVE America Act our nuke filibuster

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said Tuesday that Republicans do not have enough support in the Senate to bypass the legislative filibuster and pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act, despite pressure from President Donald Trump.

“The only way you can get … this done is to nuke the legislative filibuster, and that is not something that we have anywhere close to the votes to do,” Thune said during an interview with Fox News host Bret Baier on Special Report.

The SAVE America Act, a top legislative priority for Trump, would require Americans to provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections. The measure cleared the House in February but has stalled in the Senate amid opposition to changing the chamber’s filibuster rules, which generally require 60 votes to advance legislation.

Trump has repeatedly urged Republican senators to eliminate or bypass the filibuster to move the bill forward. However, Thune indicated that sufficient support for such a procedural change does not exist within the Republican conference.

“While the president is passionate about it,” Thune said, Republicans “are bound by arithmetic” in the Senate.

“The votes currently aren’t there,” he added.

The debate over the voting legislation has become intertwined with another major issue facing Congress: the renewal of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). The provision, which authorizes warrantless surveillance of foreign nationals by the federal government, expired last week.

Trump recently linked the two measures, arguing that Congress should approve both together. On Wednesday, the president announced he was pausing the confirmation process for federal prosecutor Jay Clayton’s nomination to serve as director until lawmakers approve both FISA and the SAVE America Act.

“I will not approve FISA without THE SAVE AMERICA ACT going along with it,” Trump wrote Wednesday on Truth Social.

Thune’s interview took place before Trump made that announcement.

Despite the president’s position, Thune suggested pairing the voting legislation with FISA renewal would jeopardize the surveillance measure’s chances of passage. Democrats have largely opposed the SAVE America Act while signaling a willingness to consider extending Section 702 authorities.

According to Thune, attaching the voting bill to FISA would likely “tank” the surveillance legislation, highlighting the political challenges facing both measures as Congress weighs its next steps.