Both sides acknowledge a stopgap measure of some kind will be necessary to keep the government funded past a Sept. 30 deadline.
But calls are growing among House conservatives to use that must-pass measure to force consideration of a partisan bill aimed at barring noncitizens from voting. The fight lays the groundwork for a clash with the Democratic-led Senate, which would likely reject such a package.
Advocates of the partisan bill, dubbed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, say the legislation would ensure that only citizens can vote in federal elections.
The bill would make it mandatory for states to obtain proof of citizenship to register voters and also requiring states to purge noncitizens from voter rolls.
However, most Democrats have pushed back strongly against the measure. The Biden administration vowed to veto it when the House considered it last month, noting it is already a crime for noncitizens to vote in federal elections.
The White House also argued the bill would make it more difficult for eligible voters to register and increase “the risk that eligible voters are purged from voter rolls.”
But there is also recognition among right-wing proponents that coupling the SAVE Act with a stopgap can be leverage for a bigger priority: Extending current government funding into 2025, with the intention of avoiding a sprawling, 12-bill omnibus funding package at the end of the year.
“We can always figure out an off-ramp,” Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who introduced the voting bill, said, if Republicans can initially unite behind a CR that includes the SAVE Act. “Is that a one-year CR? A CR into March? But it sure as hell shouldn’t be a CR into December.”
The Hill’s Emily Brooks and Aris Folley have more here.
