Trump begs Congress on SAVE America Act, calls not passing it ‘An Unrecoverable Death Wish’

With Republican senators having all but abandoned the anti-voting SAVE America Act, President Donald Trump is appealing directly to his Truth Social followers in perhaps his most extreme terms yet, in hopes of keeping it alive. 

“Not passing the SAVE AMERICA ACT will lead to the the (sic) worst results for a political party in the HISTORY of the United States Senate,” posted Trump today. “An Unrecoverable Death Wish! ! ! Likewise, the FILIBUSTER – TERMINATE IT NOW!”

The SAVE America Act was Trump’s top legislative priority. He hoped that its measures – proof of citizenship to register, restrictive photo ID requirements to vote, and an elimination of mail-in voting altogether – would help Republicans win the midterms and future elections. 

Trump also hoped it would help cement his plans to federally wrest control of elections away from the constitutionally sanctioned authority of the states.

But those hopes were dashed by several uncooperative Republicans who this week were unwilling to force the bill through via reconciliation nor by eliminating the 60-vote threshold needed to pass the Senate.

There’s still a small chance it can be revived, but Trump’s increasingly unpopular profile is leading some Republicans to distance themselves from his agenda. 

The news site NOTUS quoted several Republican senators (anonymously) expressing their weariness with the SAVE America Act. 

One senator reportedly told NOTUS that “people are tiring of it,” while another senator said that it’s “gotten to the point of being beyond annoying.” 

Meanwhile, Reuters reported that GOP operatives are advising Republican midterm candidates to steer clear of identifying too closely with Trump and instead to focus on local issues and tax cut policies.

The failure to launch the SAVE America Act (for now), compounded with the Republican defeat in Virginia’s special redistricting election this week – not to mention the unpopular war with Iran and rising gas prices — have led to abysmally low approval ratings for Trump. 

Which perhaps explains why Trump’s social media pleas to pass the bill, and eliminate the filibuster, were expressed in such extreme and fatalistic terms. 

The downside is that while the SAVE America Act is currently no longer in motion, the spirit of the legislation – unproven and baseless allegations of rampant voter fraud – is moving through the public in other forms.

A recent Reuters polls found that nearly half of voters believe Trump’s voter fraud lies and that mail-in voting is insecure. Meanwhile, several states have also either passed their own similar versions of the SAVE America Act or have bills pending. 

On top of this, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has left the door cracked open for bringing the bill up later for a vote. 

Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said during an MS NOW news segment today that Trump is looking “to hold on to power at all costs.”  

“We are seeing a desperate man, a narcissist, a fascist in the White House who is so desperate to hold on to power,” said Martin. “I think over these next 191 days left until the election, we’re going to see an unprecedented assault on our elections and voting rights. He’s so desperate to stay in power, I think we don’t even know what’s coming. And so we as a party have to prepare for every contingency under the sun.”