President Donald J. Trump laid down the gauntlet during his 2026 State of the Union address, demanding that Congress secure our elections once and for all. Now, it appears the message has finally reached the ears of the establishment in the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune confirmed this morning that he will indeed bring the SAVE America Act to the floor. The move comes as President Trump continues to pivot the country toward “common-sense” policies that the American people are demanding.
During an interview with Fox News’ Aishah Hasnie, Thune was confronted with the undeniable reality of the situation. President Trump’s SOTU demand was clear: “All voters must show voter ID.”
Despite the usual hand-wringing about the 60-vote filibuster threshold, Thune admitted that the GOP is ready to force Democrats to show their true colors.
The polling data on this issue is devastating for the Democrat party. As Hasnie pointed out, a staggering 84% of all voters believe in requiring a valid form of ID to prove citizenship before voting. This isn’t just a “Republican” issue—70% of Democrats and 84% of Independents agree with President Trump.
Yet, the radical left in the Senate continues to block this “country-saving legislation.” By forcing a vote, Thune is finally utilizing the strategy the base has been screaming for: make them defend the indefensible.
If Democrats want to vote against the will of 84% of the country right before the 2026 midterms, the GOP is more than happy to let them.
Aishah Hasnie:
Okay, the President last night also called on Congress to pass the SAVE Act — this battle over voter ID…I know that this requires 60 votes, and you likely won’t get there without having to blow up the filibuster — which you likely won’t do either, or won’t have the votes for that. When you look at the polling out there, though — the Fox polling on voter ID — it is really remarkable.
Eighty-four percent of all voters out there believe in voter ID, requiring a valid form of state- or federally issued photo identification to prove their citizenship.
But take a look at where independents and even Democrats are: Democrats are at 70 percent, independents at 84 percent. This seems like a no-brainer. Are you going to put this bill on the floor, even though you won’t have the votes to pass it, just to get Democrats on the record? And if so, when?
John Thune:
Well, we will. We’ll put the Democrats on the record. And it’s a stark contrast — the Democrats, even in the chamber last night, having to sit there and try and defend allowing non-citizens to vote in American elections. That is a losing proposition for them. So we will get a vote on it.We are right now in the middle of a government shutdown, so we’ve got to try to get the government opened up first. But in due time, we will get that up on the floor. We will have a vote on it.
We will make sure that the Democrats are on the record. It is a stark contrast between Republicans and Democrats about how they want to handle elections in this country. And this is going to put them, I think, in a very difficult position. It’s an issue — if I were running as a Democrat in the midterm elections in November — I wouldn’t want to have to defend.
WATCH:
The legislation is expected to become a central campaign issue in November, as Republicans seek to draw a clear distinction between their push for stricter election integrity measures and Democrats’ continued opposition to federal voter ID mandates.
Thune also revealed that Senate Republicans are actively exploring a new reconciliation package ahead of the midterms — one that could include expanding retirement savings access for working-class Americans by allowing them to utilize accounts similar to those offered to federal employees.
The proposal would build on several Trump-era economic initiatives passed over the past year, including:
- Trump newborn savings accounts
- Expanded childcare tax credits
- Employer tax incentives for building daycare facilities
- No tax on tips
- No tax on overtime
- Reduced Social Security taxes for seniors
Aishah Hasnie:
The President also asked you and Speaker Mike Johnson to codify a couple of things, like his most-favored-nation status for prescription medication. He also talked about giving middle-class workers the same retirement accounts that federal workers get. And the Treasury Secretary threw out an idea of maybe putting this into a reconciliation package. Are you guys working on another reconciliation package this year ahead of the midterms?John Thune:
We are soliciting ideas from the relevant committees here in the Senate to see if there is an issue set that we could put up for a reconciliation bill that would get 50 votes. And obviously, allowing people to save for retirement and allowing everybody across this country to have access to the same sorts of retirement accounts that federal employees do, I think, is a great idea.Obviously, there’s a lot of work that has to happen in the House and the Senate in order to make something like that become a reality. But it builds on the great foundation that we have from this last year — the things that the President has done, the Trump newborn accounts, for example, childcare tax credits, tax credits for employers who are willing to build daycare facilities.
There were so many things in there targeted at working-class families: no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, reducing taxes on seniors on Social Security. There have been some consequential and major pieces of legislation passed — policies that are going to be felt by the American people for years to come.
And I think they’re going to be felt this next year, more specifically when people file their tax returns and the refunds are significantly bigger than they were last year.
This President is committed to safer streets, to more money in the American people’s pockets, and to new opportunities for Americans to get ahead. And I think those are the things that we need to be focused on as we head into this year and into the midterm elections.
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