{"id":19336,"date":"2026-02-20T16:07:05","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T16:07:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/?p=19336"},"modified":"2026-02-20T16:07:05","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T16:07:05","slug":"house-republicans-pressure-senate-to-force-vote-on-save-america-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/?p=19336","title":{"rendered":"House Republicans Pressure Senate to Force Vote on SAVE America Act"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n Reading Time:<\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A group of House Republicans, accustomed to pressuring their own chamber\u2019s leadership, is now publicly calling for the Senate to use a\u00a0\u201ctalking filibuster\u201d\u00a0in order to pass voter identification legislation.\n<\/p>\n

Pray for your fellow intercessor.<\/h4>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think the votes are there [in the Senate] to eliminate the filibuster, but they might be there to actually force the Democrats to do what\u2019s called the \u2018talking filibuster,\u2019 which is the way it was up until the 1980s,\u201d\u00a0House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris,\u00a0R-Md., said in a recent Fox News appearance as he called for the Senate to pass the SAVE America Act.\n<\/p>\n

The bill would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and photo identification to vote in federal elections. It has passed in the House but has not received a vote in the Senate.\n<\/p>\n

A faction of Washington conservatives is calling for Senate Republicans to enforce Rule 19 of the Standing Rules of the Senate, under which senators are limited to two speeches per legislative question.\n<\/p>\n

Under that strategy, Republicans would put the SAVE America Act on the floor, refuse to adjourn, and force Democrats to use up all their speeches. At the end of the process, Republicans could then vote on the bill and pass it with a simple majority.\n<\/p>\n

It would be an alternative to the norm of overcoming the filibuster by seeking 60 votes to end debate and bring the bill to a final vote. That would be unlikely due to Democrats\u2019 general opposition to the bill.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re supposed to stand on the floor and debate the bill,\u201d Harris continued.\u00a0\u201cYou don\u2019t just take a vote and walk off the floor \u2026 We want to hear the Democrats\u2019 arguments that we shouldn\u2019t ask for citizenship proof if you register to vote for a federal election or that you shouldn\u2019t show a photo ID for a federal election.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re supposed to stand on the floor and debate the bill. You don\u2019t just take a vote and walk off the floor. The bottom line is we want to hear the Democrats\u2019 arguments for why you shouldn\u2019t have to prove citizenship or show voter ID for a federal election.\u201d pic.twitter.com\/OyzEmpkmtc<\/a>\n<\/p>\n

\u2014 Rep. Andy Harris, MD (@RepAndyHarrisMD) February 17, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

This is not to be confused with \u201cnuking\u201d the filibuster via a rule change, as it would be the enforcement of an existing rule.\n<\/p>\n

Then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.,\u00a0reportedly considered the talking filibuster approach in 2022\u00a0to pass\u00a0the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.\n<\/p>\n

Senate Democrats ultimately tried another way to exempt the bill from the 60-vote cloture requirement, but failed with bipartisan opposition.\n<\/p>\n

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, formerly a chief of staff for\u00a0Sen. Ted Cruz,\u00a0R-Texas, has also been making the case for the talking filibuster.\n<\/p>\n

Roy argues that under this approach, the \u201cworst-case scenario\u201d would be that \u201cDemocrats filibuster to death an 85% issue like voter ID in front of the entire country.\u201d He added that the \u201cbest-case scenario\u201d would be that \u201cDemocrats filibuster an 85% issue, and we defeat them and it becomes law.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how to pass the #SAVEAmericaAct<\/a> in the Senate\u2026 https:\/\/t.co\/LPaPJKAOhG pic.twitter.com\/3T5ThdBtJA<\/a>\n<\/p>\n

\u2014 Chip Roy (@chiproytx) February 16, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

However, some Republicans in Washington are opposing the strategy.\n<\/p>\n

Michael Fragoso, former chief counsel for\u00a0Sen. Mitch McConnell,\u00a0R-Ky., wrote in National Review that the approach would create an\u00a0\u201cunwinnable vote-a-rama,\u201d\u00a0in which Democrats could delay legislative action and push Republicans into uncomfortable votes by offering amendments.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cDemocrats would be able to force Republicans on a series of death marches on popular issues of their choosing,\u201d Fragoso wrote in one article.\n<\/p>\n

For this reason, Fragoso has argued the approach\u00a0\u201cwould actually require some rule changes to succeed.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, some advocates of forcing the talking filibuster, such as Rachel Bovard of the\u00a0Conservative Partnership Institute,\u00a0believe that Democrat-backed amendments should not be a problem.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cRepublicans need to be prepared to table (or kill) Democrat amendments, even if they are on issues some Republicans agree with, such as\u00a0overturning President Donald Trump\u2019s tariffs.\u00a0This is called strategic voting, and senators do it all of the time,\u201d Bovard\u00a0wrote\u00a0in a recent article for The Federalist.\n<\/p>\n

How are you praying about the SAVE Act? Share your prayers and scriptures below.<\/h4>\n

This article was originally published at the Daily Signal. Photo Credit: Baltimore County Government.<\/em>
\n \n <\/p>\n