A coalition of conservative House Republicans has effectively shut down most floor action, demanding that Congress pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act before moving to other legislation. The standoff presents a fresh challenge for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) as he struggles to advance the chamber's agenda.
The SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship for voter registration and a photo ID to cast a ballot, cleared the House but has stalled in the Senate amid Democratic opposition. President Trump has repeatedly pressed congressional leaders to find a way to enact the measure, and on Wednesday he canceled a signing ceremony for a broadly popular bipartisan housing bill, vowing not to sign it until the Senate passes the voter ID legislation.
Several hardliners have said they will oppose any procedural rules, effectively blocking debate and final votes, until the SAVE America Act becomes law. With the House's razor-thin majority, Johnson needs near-unanimous GOP support for procedural votes. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) posted on X Thursday that she will “not be voting to re-open the floor until the Senate gets back to Washington.” The Senate departed for a two-week recess on Wednesday.
“The Senate is literally running and not ONE senator objected to going on vacation before 4th of July. John Thune is running and hiding because he doesn’t want to get voter ID across the finish line,” Luna added. Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), a member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, said in a press briefing Thursday that Trump did the right thing by not signing the housing bill. “I personally think we should not have any more legislation until the Senate comes back in session, and they’re out for two weeks, ironically,” he said.
Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) told reporters Wednesday he would be “a little more amenable” to supporting a procedural rule if he sees progress on other priorities, such as a GOP border bill or a stock trading ban. “If I see movement on something else, I might give on the other. If we can’t get Save America done, but we can get like a vote on HR 2…which we’re supposed to get, by the way, if we can get some movement on stock trading, which I’ve not seeing movement on, these are all things I want to see movement on. Well, now I’m a little more amenable,” Roy said.
House GOP leaders scrapped a procedural vote on Wednesday amid the hardliner opposition. They have only advanced measures under a fast-track process requiring two-thirds support. The House was set to take up two appropriations bills this week through regular order, but those votes were postponed after leaders canceled Friday's session. The gridlock is also derailing other GOP priorities, including a renewal of warrantless surveillance authorities and a third budget reconciliation package. GOP fiscal conservatives have already resisted Trump's big-spending defense and Iran war funding push, adding to the turmoil.
Trump and congressional conservatives have urged Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to eliminate the filibuster or employ a talking filibuster to force the SAVE America Act through. That tactic would require Democrats to speak continuously to delay the bill, allowing Republicans to pass it with 51 votes if Democrats cede the floor. Roy, the policy chair of the House Freedom Caucus, said during a press conference, “The only question before us right now is whether the Senate will put America first or continue to put the Senate first. That’s what the question is. We’re trying to say that the Senate needs to move forward and to force this through using all of the tools at their disposal, and to stop hiding behind fake thresholds that the Senate itself has put in place.”
Thune has resisted that approach, arguing there aren't enough GOP votes to change the filibuster rule. Johnson said Wednesday he spoke with Trump about using reconciliation—a process that bypasses the filibuster—as the only viable path. Johnson proposed creating a grant program in the next reconciliation package to fund state implementation of the SAVE America Act. But Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), a House Freedom Caucus member, countered that blue states would opt out. Luna also rejected the idea, posting on X: “Attach SAVE America to FISA or NDAA. Suggesting Reconciliation is an insult to our intelligence, everyone knows that will NEVER work. If @SpeakerJohnson wants us to open the House floor these are the only options.”
Johnson is scheduled to meet with Trump late Wednesday to discuss a way out of the gridlock. Meanwhile, the standoff underscores the deepening fracture within the GOP, as the Massie-Greene alliance signals conservative discontent with Trump's grip on the party.
