Trump's election bill tops 50 Senate votes, but Democrats could still block it

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Source: NBC News

WASHINGTON — The SAVE America Act to require proof of citizenship nationwide to register to vote and overhaul voting laws has now topped 50 votes in the Republican-controlled Senate.

The bill is supported by President Donald Trump and passed the House last week, meaning the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster rule is the only thing standing in the way of it becoming law.

The tally guarantees a battle over the bill on the Senate floor as Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has promised a vote. But he warned last week that there are “not even close” to enough votes for getting rid of the filibuster, despite Trump's calls to do so. If the filibuster remains intact, the legislation will still fail as Democrats are certain to use every tool to block it.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, the chief sponsor of the bill, is pushing Republicans to use existing rules to force Democrats to engage in a “talking filibuster” on the floor of the Senate. The idea is to tire out opposing Democrats and pass it. But the tactic is a long shot, viewed by previous Senate majorities as doomed to fail if attempted. The rules make it considerably easier for a filibustering minority to sustain the 60-vote threshold than for a majority to break their will and advance a bill with 51 votes.

Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trumps-election-bill-tops-50-210950640.html

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Susan Collins is a fake moderate

[BumRushDaShow]

1. The GOP has 53 members and (D)s/(I)s have 47

They need 60 votes for cloture (end a filibuster).

So even if all 53 GOPers vote for it, they still need 7 (D)s and/or (I)s to move to the debate and final vote.

But to put a twist on the media's idiotically parroted phrase - "It's complicated". In this case it is NOT "complicated".

[BaronChocula]

8. Fetterman - pro, Murkowski - no

as of today (I think). I can't see any more Dems signing on to this.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. Am hoping it is DOA in the Senate

(even if Thune brings it up for a vote over and over)

[Wiz Imp]

20. Fetterman has not said he supports it.

He supports parts of it but he said that the parts which requires changes to curtail mail-in registration were "a nonstarter" for him. That sounds more like a no vote at this point to me. Regardless, even he says it will never get 60 votes in the Senate.

[Fiendish Thingy]

2. Filibusters can be initiated by a simple email to the clerk stating the intention to filibuster

Numerous bills have been blocked that way, for decades.

If republicans try to change the rules, Dems should disrupt the chamber until they back down.

If Fetterman votes for this, he should be expelled from the caucus after the midterms and stripped of committee assignments.

This will be the ultimate test of Schumer’s leadership.

[OldBaldy1701E]

3. "This will be the ultimate test of Schumer's leadership."

Well, that does not fill me with 'warm fuzzies'.

[onenote]

5. What if. after the midterms, the Senate is split 51 D/49R

Would you still support expelling Fetterman, thereby handing Vance the tie breaking vote on legislation?

[Fiendish Thingy]

7. Tell me, what legislation is going to be passed with the filibuster intact?

51 votes won’t get anything passed except a reconciliation bill that Trump will veto.

If Fetterman helps pass the SAVE act, it will mean he knows his days in the senate are numbered.

If he takes that step, He needs to be made an example of.

If he votes to confirm Trump judges, he needs to be made an example of.

If he votes against removal of Trump or any cabinet members after they are impeached, he needs to be made an example of.

[onenote]

9. So you'd hand control over the Senate back to the repubs

Fetterman sucks, but if he stays in the caucus, the majority leader isn't an R and Vance can't break ties. And Fetterman more often than not has voted with the party on judicial nominations, so you'd be ensuring Trump's worst of the worst would get confirmed.

Which, of course, is your right.

[Fiendish Thingy]

10. It would be Fetterman handing control to the republicans

In the examples I described, if Fetterman voted with the republicans, he would be giving them control in the senate,

If he supports the Democratic Party and its agenda, then he will vote accordingly.

[BumRushDaShow]

16. Here is a tracker/scorer for how progressive/conservative our members of Congress are

https://progressivepunch.org/

It can be sorted by chamber & party, as well as more granularly by topics/issues, "overall/"crucial votes" (for the current year) and the same breakdown for "lifetime votes".

SENATE

https://progressivepunch.org/scores.htm?topic=&house=senate&sort=overall-lifetime&order=down&party=D

If you sort by "lifetime"/"overall", you will see a group who is consistently voting the same as Fetterman -

40 Kaine, Tim
41 Shaheen, Jeanne
42 Warner, Mark
43 Slotkin, Elissa (1st Term)
44 Hassan, Maggie
46 Gallego, Ruben (1st Term)
47 Fetterman, John

You can do all kinds of sorts with this and it gives you a good view of where they stand.

Fetterman is a show-boater so gets all the attention, and there are certain issues that he is hardcore on one way or the other. But there are others there who have been just as destructive and manage to get a pass for some reason (perhaps due to the states they were elected in, although there is no excuse now for Tim Kaine).

So for example, if you just look at this year's session and sort by "crucial votes", your "F" ratings are in order of least to worst -

43 Kaine, Tim 78.34
45 Fetterman, John 1 73.23
46 Shaheen, Jeanne 72.73
47 Hassan, Maggie 71.98

So sometimes one has to really dive into the data to see the reality.

I found this tool a few years ago and it has been enlightening.

[Deminpenn]

19. Fetterman might be a lot of things, but showboater isn't one of them

Personally, I believe he's an introvert by nature. He marches to his own drummer, though, that's for sure. He also seems very black and white, no gray areas.

I also believe Brendan Boyle, a smart and serious Dem who represents part of NE Phila, will run against him in 2028 and likely win both the primary and general election.

[Fiendish Thingy]

22. Thanks

IIRC, Shaheen is retiring, and the rest aren’t up for re-election until 2028.

Plenty of time to recruit primary challengers.

[Wiz Imp]

24. Thanks.

I've pointed this out several times but almost everybody seems to ignore it. The Fetterman bashing around here is extremely tiring. It wouldn't be so bad if people were consistent and directed as much scorn against all of the Democratic Senators who vote consistently similarly to Fetterman. As your list shows, there are quite a few. But most everyone here ignores them and acts like Fetterman is some big outlier. He is not.

And if you could go back and look at votes pre-2025, you'd see Manchin's score was FAR lower than Fetterman (so comparing the 2 is ridiculous), not to mention, that Manchin caused numerous pieces of progressive legislation to either never be brought up for a vote, or watered down in order to gain his vote. That never happened with Fetterman during 2023-24 when Dems held the majority.

[Ilikepurple]

11. I believe for tie-breaking it matters how Fetterman votes, not what party he's a member of?

I do agree that as much as Fetterman draws my ire, he still votes with the party enough that he’s more useful as a Democrat than not. Also, it’s important he stays in the D caucus in this scenario as the majority has the upper hand in committee composition. Thank you and Fiendish Thingy for your short debate as it’s helpful to bring things into focus.

[Wiz Imp]

21. If the SAVE Act passed the Senate, it would mean at least 8 Democrats voted for it.

In that case, blaming it all on Fetterman is absolutely ridiculous. As has been shown numerous times, Fetterman's voting record is effectively no different than a number of other Democrats. If you're going to trash Fetterman, you should trash all of those others equally as hard. But that never happens here.

Fortunately in this case, it doesn't matter beccause there is ZERO chance of the SAVE Act passing.

[Fiendish Thingy]

23. Unless, as threatened, they change the rules in the filibuster. Nt

[Wiz Imp]

25. If they change the rules eliminating the filibuster, then ZERO Democratic votes are needed to

pass it. (That's what the original article was about). So Fetterman's vote becomes meaningless. There is no reason to single out Fetterman

[Fiendish Thingy]

26. Unless more republicans than Murkowski vote No. nt

[Wiz Imp]

4. There is ZERO chance of it passing.

I believe Murkowski has said she will vote against it meaning 8 Democratic votes would be needed. No Democrats have said they will vote for it (and before people claim Fetterman supports it, while he has said he supports parts of it, he actually said this: changes to curtail mail-in registration were "a nonstarter" for him.) But even if he did vote for it, that's only one. Who would the other 7 be? (Hint: they don't exist.)

It passed the House last year with 4 Democratic votes and Thune never even brought it to the floor for a vote in the Senate. The makeup of the Senate has not changed. I'm not sure why he would bring it for a vote now given there is no chance of it passing.

[AverageOldGuy]

6. I recall election night 2016 . . .

. . . when there was no way Trump would win over Hillary.

[Karma13612]

12. This isn't the same situation

At all.

[Wiz Imp]

18. Ridiculous comparison

Name me the 8 Democrats who are going to vote for it?

[Ilikepurple]

13. Lots of good info here, but not a ZERO (all capitals?) chance of passing.

There are relatively few noncontradictory propositions that have a zero chance of obtaining. In my experience, such language is often abused to allay the fears of children as in “there’s a zero chance you’ll die from space junk tonight” or “there is no chance of a an interstellar object colliding within your lifetime”. I find the hyperbole in adult settings is often used to shut down debate and borders on apodioxis. I’m fine with just knowing the facts and your analysis of them. You’ve provided a strong argument for your position, but it is not apodictic and kind of strange to treat it as such.

[no_hypocrisy]

15. Behind-the-scenes

1. If it becomes a "talking filibuster," more voters will know and understand the consequences of the Bill becoming law.
2. A majority of women will lose their right to vote in federal elections as they will either lack the documents or the time or the will to return their suffrage. Eff You, Susan B. Anthony.
3. John Thune likely is between a rock and a hard place. IOW, he knows this vote won't defy the filibuster as there aren't enough non-Republican votes to pass it. But he fears TSF if he DOESN'T put it up for a vote.
4. If there IS a vote, the Republicans voting in favor of The Save Act will be remembered by their Democratic adversaries, not so much for making the voting process "more fair, more honest," but for keeping women from exercising their constitutional right to vote (both Democrats and Republicans)
5. Thune would want to avoid ANYTHING that endangers a republican majority in the Senate. This won't help.

[travelingthrulife]

17. Republicans...destroying our democracy one pillar at a time.