Senate Majority Leader John Thune flatly rejected calls to change filibuster rules for the SAVE America Act, declaring “that’s not going to happen” on Monday despite escalating pressure from President Donald Trump, who threatened to withhold his signature from all legislation until the voting bill reaches his desk.
Thune told ABC News that eliminating or weakening the 60-vote threshold required to advance most Senate legislation would not occur, even as Trump intensified his campaign to pass the election reform measure ahead of November’s midterm elections. “If the result is only achieved by nuking the legislative filibuster, we don’t have the votes to do that and so that’s just not a realistic option,” Thune said.
Trump’s threat came after weeks of pressure on the Senate Republican leader. On Sunday, the president posted on his social media platform that the SAVE America Act “must be done immediately” and “supersedes everything else,” warning that he would not sign other bills until it passes. Trump also floated using a “talking filibuster”—a procedural change that would allow senators to bypass the 60-vote requirement through endless speeches and amendments—to advance the bill.
Thune cautioned that such a change would create a “monthslong” process consuming valuable Senate floor time with no guaranteed outcome. He emphasized that Senate time is “a finite resource” that must be used wisely to accomplish as much as possible. The majority leader also suggested he could bring the SAVE America Act to a floor vote once the Senate completes work on housing legislation, though such a vote would be unlikely to succeed under current rules and would not meet Trump’s demand to send it to his desk for signature.
The SAVE America Act, formally the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, would restrict mail-in ballots, require photo ID at polling places, and mandate that states obtain proof of citizenship before registering voters in federal elections. The House narrowly passed the bill in February with support from a single Democrat, but it faces a steeper challenge in the Senate, where Democrats have vowed to block it. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the bill “Jim Crow 2.0” and said Senate Democrats “will not help pass the SAVE Act under any circumstances.”
Thune’s refusal to change Senate rules reflects a broader Republican reluctance to eliminate the filibuster, despite Trump’s repeated calls. When Democrats controlled the Senate during the Biden administration, they also resisted eliminating the 60-vote threshold, though some Democrats had pushed for reform. Thune has repeatedly told Trump that the SAVE America Act lacks sufficient support to pass even if filibuster rules were changed, a reality that has constrained the president’s legislative strategy.
The Senate has already voted multiple times on the SAVE America Act without success. In August, Senate Republicans agreed to delay a budget resolution and parts of the bill until after the August recess, effectively sidelining Trump’s priority. Thune expressed hope that Trump might ultimately sign other key legislation despite his threat, saying “I hope at the end of the day that if we can move things across the floor here and actually put legislation on his desk, that he will find a way to sign it.”
Sources
- ABC News — Thune’s direct statement rejecting filibuster changes, Trump’s threat to withhold signature, details of the SAVE America Act, and Schumer’s response
- The Hill — Senate Republican agreement to delay the bill after August recess and voting history on the SAVE Act
- PBS NewsHour — Trump’s public demand that Thune keep the Senate in session and eliminate the filibuster
- Courthouse News — Details on Trump’s pressure campaign and Thune’s resistance to filibuster elimination
- Democracy Docket — Senate voting record on the SAVE America Act amendments and prior rejection attempts
