The Senate is prepping this week for a marathon debate on the SAVE America Act that could stretch for days, or even weeks, and perhaps even around the clock. That alone would be stunning compared to the lackadaisical version of Washington we see today. The first possible roadblock is whether the Senate will even allow the debate to begin.
Before senators can debate the bill, they must first pass a motion to lay the message before the Senate, which, in this instance, requires only a simple 51-vote majority. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who is not seeking reelection, is expected to oppose starting debate. Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Mitch McConnell remain question marks. If no more than three Republicans defect, Vice President JD Vance could break the tie and bring the bill to the floor, further cementing his superstar status as the hope for the future of the GOP.
That noted reluctance to bring the bill to the floor reflects a much deeper problem with how the Senate now operates. What was once the greatest deliberative body in the world has been grotesquely diminished.
The United States Senate was never meant to be a body that demanded guarantees before legislation could be debated. It was designed to be a place where senators argue, persuade, cajole, amend, and ultimately vote. A few short decades ago, the Senate possessed the vitality and stamina required for that caliber of legislative performance. It was a younger man’s game, not only in body but in conviction, qualities in short supply among those who now (or still) occupy that once-imposing chamber.
The Senate has drifted into something very different. As policy analyst Rachel Bovard has aptly put it, the Senate has become little more than a scheduling service: bills negotiated behind closed doors by a handful of senators and their staff until leadership is confident they have 60 votes lined up. Only then does legislation make it to the floor. They go through a performative “debate” and then vote on a predetermined outcome.
That is not deliberation worthy of the United States Senate; it is choreography.
This time around, Majority Leader John Thune plans to use a procedural maneuver known as “filling the amendment tree,” placing placeholder amendments on the bill to prevent unrelated proposals from derailing the bill. That will keep the focus on the SAVE America Act legislation itself rather than turning the process into a free-for-all of unrelated political fights.
At the same time, Thune is deliberately avoiding the Senate’s familiar 60-vote trap out of the gate. He is not expected to file cloture to cut off debate at 30 hours. Instead, the chamber will simply debate the bill for as long as senators wish to speak. In other words, the Senate will debate a bill before deciding its fate. How novel!
The overwhelming popularity of the SAVE America Act debate offers a rare opportunity for America to see what our Senate is made of. This is a straightforward, common-sense election integrity bill requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote, ensuring voter ID at polling places, and mandating that states keep their voter rolls clean and accurate. None of these ideas are radical. In nearly every other part of American life, from boarding a plane to cashing a check, or even entering a federal building, identity verification is routine. Elections should not be the lone exception.
The American people understand this instinctively. Poll after poll shows overwhelming support exceeding 80 percent for the bill itself. Support cuts across party lines because the principle is simple: voting in America’s elections is the sacred right of American citizens.
By bringing the SAVE America Act to the floor this week without immediately invoking cloture, Majority Leader Thune is giving the country a chance to see what the Senate is made of, through real debate and deliberation.
Miracles can happen!
Before senators can debate the bill, they must first pass a motion to lay the message before the Senate, which, in this instance, requires only a simple 51-vote majority. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who is not seeking reelection, is expected to oppose starting debate. Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Mitch McConnell remain question marks. If no more than three Republicans defect, Vice President JD Vance could break the tie and bring the bill to the floor, further cementing his superstar status as the hope for the future of the GOP.
That noted reluctance to bring the bill to the floor reflects a much deeper problem with how the Senate now operates. What was once the greatest deliberative body in the world has been grotesquely diminished.
The United States Senate was never meant to be a body that demanded guarantees before legislation could be debated. It was designed to be a place where senators argue, persuade, cajole, amend, and ultimately vote. A few short decades ago, the Senate possessed the vitality and stamina required for that caliber of legislative performance. It was a younger man’s game, not only in body but in conviction, qualities in short supply among those who now (or still) occupy that once-imposing chamber.
The Senate has drifted into something very different. As policy analyst Rachel Bovard has aptly put it, the Senate has become little more than a scheduling service: bills negotiated behind closed doors by a handful of senators and their staff until leadership is confident they have 60 votes lined up. Only then does legislation make it to the floor. They go through a performative “debate” and then vote on a predetermined outcome.
That is not deliberation worthy of the United States Senate; it is choreography.
This time around, Majority Leader John Thune plans to use a procedural maneuver known as “filling the amendment tree,” placing placeholder amendments on the bill to prevent unrelated proposals from derailing the bill. That will keep the focus on the SAVE America Act legislation itself rather than turning the process into a free-for-all of unrelated political fights.
At the same time, Thune is deliberately avoiding the Senate’s familiar 60-vote trap out of the gate. He is not expected to file cloture to cut off debate at 30 hours. Instead, the chamber will simply debate the bill for as long as senators wish to speak. In other words, the Senate will debate a bill before deciding its fate. How novel!
The overwhelming popularity of the SAVE America Act debate offers a rare opportunity for America to see what our Senate is made of. This is a straightforward, common-sense election integrity bill requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote, ensuring voter ID at polling places, and mandating that states keep their voter rolls clean and accurate. None of these ideas are radical. In nearly every other part of American life, from boarding a plane to cashing a check, or even entering a federal building, identity verification is routine. Elections should not be the lone exception.
The American people understand this instinctively. Poll after poll shows overwhelming support exceeding 80 percent for the bill itself. Support cuts across party lines because the principle is simple: voting in America’s elections is the sacred right of American citizens.
By bringing the SAVE America Act to the floor this week without immediately invoking cloture, Majority Leader Thune is giving the country a chance to see what the Senate is made of, through real debate and deliberation.
Miracles can happen!
