Exclusive: SAVE Act hangs in the balance as Republican Study Committee pushes for Senate passage



While the Senate continues stalling the commonsense SAVE Act, the Republican Study Committee members are pressuring their colleagues to send the bill to President Donald Trump's desk.

The House passed the SAVE Act for the second time in April, but the Senate has yet to schedule a vote to pass the bill. Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas originally spearheaded the legislation, which would simply require proof of U.S. citizenship to vote in federal elections.

'American elections should be fair and free, not subject to foreign influence.'

Since then, dozens of RSC members have been pressuring the Senate to hold a vote, telling Blaze News that "the Senate must do their job."

"Voting in American elections is a right reserved for American citizens, and the House did our job by passing the SAVE Act months ago to secure it," RSC Chairman August Pfluger (Texas) told Blaze News. "We're already a full year into the 119th Congress, and the American people are still waiting for the Senate to deliver what we promised them in 2024. They sent us here to get things done, not to make excuses."

RELATED: Democrats vote overwhelmingly against GOP bill aiming to bar illegal aliens from voting

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"This is a commonsense reform with broad public support from Americans who want elections that are free, fair, and secure," Roy told Blaze News. "Now it's time for the Senate to act. All it takes is 51 Republicans willing to demand a vote. And if Democrats choose to filibuster, they can explain to the American people why they believe noncitizens should be allowed to vote. That is a debate we will win every time."

Roy and Pfluger secured the backing of dozens of colleagues, including RSC Vice Chair Ben Cline of Virginia and Republican Reps. Mark Alford of Missouri; Riley Moore of West Virginia; Kat Cammack of Florida; Andy Harris of Maryland; Andy Ogles of Tennessee; Claudia Tenney of New York; Burgess Owens of Utah; Abe Hamadeh of Arizona; Anna Paulina Luna of Florida; Brandon Gill of Texas; John McGuire of Virginia; Robert Aderholt of Alabama; Mike Collins of Georgia; Eric Burlison of Missouri; Ralph Norman of South Carolina; Marlin Stutzman of Indiana; Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania; Mike Ezell of Mississippi; Russell Fry of South Carolina; Mark Harris of North Carolina; Buddy Carter of Georgia; Mike Kennedy of Utah; and Lance Gooden of Texas.

As Luna of Florida noted to Blaze News, "House Republicans are aligned."

"American elections should be fair and free, not subject to foreign influence," Gill told Blaze News. "Illegal aliens have no right to be in America, and they certainly shouldn't be voting."

RELATED: 'Horrifying situation': Some Republicans retreat following Minneapolis shooting of anti-ICE agitator

Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images

"We hear from the other side that voter ID is somehow racist," Owens told Blaze News, referring to common talking points peddled by Democrats. "That is nonsense. What is racist is assuming minorities can’t get an ID. That’s called the soft bigotry of low expectations, and it is wildly insulting. I’ve been a proud day-one co-sponsor of the SAVE Act."

"The longer the Senate waits, the longer this commonsense protection sits on the shelf," Pfluger told Blaze News. "Seven Democrat Senators must decide: Do they stand with Republicans in affirming that our elections are legal, fair, and only for American citizens, or don't they? The answer should be obvious. Pass this bill and get it to President Trump's desk."

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Biden wants taxpayers to pay for obliterated bridge — but a House Republican has better ideas



Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.) doesn't believe taxpayers should finance the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.

After a massive cargo ship obliterated the bridge, President Joe Biden promised to "move heaven and earth to reopen the port and rebuild the bridge as soon as humanly possible."

His plan? To force taxpayers to fund the project.

"It's my intention that federal government will pay for the entire cost of reconstructing that bridge, and I expect the Congress to support my effort," Biden explained on Tuesday.

But Meuser thinks the government must explore other options instead of rushing to spend more taxpayer money.

"It was kind of outrageous immediately for Biden to express in this tragedy the idea that he’s going to use federal funds to pay for it in the entirety," he said Thursday on Fox Business. "You know, he doesn’t refer to it as the American taxpayers' dollars on anything. You know, the first reaction, in fact the only reaction, tends to be to spend."

He added, "We just can't take the easy route all of the time and just spend the taxpayers' money."

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Instead, Meuser suggested three alternative ways to pay for the rebuilding project.

First, Meuser said Singapore, where the company that owns the ship is located, could play a role in helping finance the project. Second, he pointed to insurance companies, something Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has also suggested. Third, he said that money from Biden's massive infrastructure bill that isn't being used can be reappropriated to pay for the project.

The exact cost of the rebuilding project is not yet known. It is expected to cost several billion dollars.

Still, it would not be totally unprecedented for taxpayers to foot the bill.

After the I-35W Mississippi River bridge collapsed on August 1, 2007, Congress unanimously approved a bill allotting $250 million in emergency money to rebuild the bridge. Then-President George W. Bush signed that bill on August 6, 2007.

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9 House Republicans are running for House speaker



As the House speakership selection saga drags on due to the collapse of GOP Rep. Jim Jordan's bid last week, a whopping nine Republican lawmakers have jumped into the race.

The Republicans who have announced speakership bids include Tom Emmer of Minnesota, Mike Johnson of Louisiana, Jack Bergman of Michigan, Byron Donalds of Florida, Kevin Hern of Oklahoma, Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania, Gary Palmer of Alabama, Austin Scott of Georgia, and Pete Sessions of Texas. Scott ran unsuccessfully against Jordan for the GOP speakership nomination earlier this month.

The House GOP is slated to vote for a new speaker nominee on Tuesday, reports indicate.

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Republicans hold the majority in the House chamber, but have failed tap a new speaker since Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted from the role earlier this month. It took McCarthy 15 rounds of voting to win the speakership back in January, but earlier this month, eight Republicans voted with Democrats to boot him from the post.

Jordan, who had been backed by former President Donald Trump, came up short in three House votes last week, unable to cobble together enough support to reach the threshold necessary to secure the speakership. Democrats voted for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in all three rounds of balloting.

GOP Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, who had been backing Jordan, has now thrown his support behind Donalds.

"While I still believe Jim would have been a strong choice for Speaker, Republicans will now coalesce around another strong leader. I believe that candidate is my friend from Florida, Byron Donalds," Roy said in a statement. "Byron is a strong communicator backed by a conservative voting record who has simultaneously played a central role in bringing together members from across the Republican conference to advance conservative priorities."

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Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York responded to the news of Byron Donalds' speakership bid by tweeting, "Donalds has only served 1 full term in the House. His most recent work involved submitting falsified evidence in an impeachment investigation. These people are not serious."

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