It’s that time of year again. Government spending must be reapproved for another year. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) plans to offer a six-month continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government at near-current levels until March. But there’s a catch – to pass the CR, Democrats will also have to pass a voter ID law. It’s a plan one might call clever if it had much chance of success. But, of course, it doesn’t.
Saving the SAVE Act?
The GOP-led House already passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act in July, 221 to 198, and there were five Democrats on board – Reps. Henry Cuellar of Texas, Don Davis of North Carolina, Jared Golden of Maine, Vicente Gonzalez Jr. of Texas, and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington. So what’s the problem? Why is this bill back in the House?
With Democrats holding the Senate majority, the bill was basically dead on arrival at the upper chamber.
The SAVE Act would require future voters to confirm their citizenship status and to prove it by showing ID. Democrats who oppose the bill argue that it’s already illegal for non-citizens to vote. So, of course, the left opposes it. However, Speaker Johnson plans to tie the bill to a six-month CR to put off the budget battle until after the administration changes. Next week, the House will vote on the package deal once Congress returns from summer break.
The deal is also expected to include a one-year renewal of the farm bill as well as money to shore up deficits in the Department of Veterans Affairs. House Republicans aren’t trying for massive nondefense spending cuts this time.
He Said, She Said – But Who’s Listening?
Johnson's ploy, should it succeed, would give Republicans two wins. First is the SAVE Act itself. The second is the timing. The long CR puts funding negotiations well into the next term - good news for the GOP if Trump wins, especially if they manage to pick up a few seats in Congress as well. But, of course, it almost certainly won't work.
Democrats, for the most part, aren’t interested. First and foremost, the vast majority of Democrats oppose voter ID laws. It would be nigh impossible to get enough votes in the Senate even to avoid a so-called shutdown. Then there’s the timing. Democrats want to have this talk while Biden is still president and they hold the Senate. Should Trump win and Republicans pick up a few more seats in the House or the Senate, the balance of power will shift considerably.
Make no mistake, this is just a new take on an old trick. In most funding fights over the last few years, Republicans have attempted to tie government money to a balanced budget or, barring that, at least some spending cuts. Democrats insist their peers across the aisle should pass a “clean CR,” meaning a stopgap funding bill with no strings attached. Talk of balancing the budget can come later, they say – though it never does.
Each side refuses to play ball, hoping to hold the other responsible for any shutdown that does occur. Republicans eventually cave, giving Democrats the clean CR they want and getting virtually nothing in return – and each time this cycle plays out, both sides try to blame the other.
This year seems to be no different. Democrats won’t accept the SAVE Act, and Republicans won’t allow a shutdown to persist long, assuming they let it begin at all. Here’s the problem: Both sides say the other is holding government funding hostage, but only their own base is listening. Republican voters blame the Democrats, and Democrat voters blame the GOP – and none of them are changing their votes because of it.
Yes, Johnson will likely try to force Democrats to accept the SAVE Act, but no, it almost certainly won’t clear the Senate. And if there’s any whiff of a shutdown, they’ll blame each other, eventually get the CR, and kick that can down the road a bit farther. Then, on November 5, the party faithful will go on to pull the lever for their party candidates regardless of any soundbites that may come of this.
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