President Donald Trump’s push for voting restrictions is complicating an already troubled Iran war funding bill, according to the New York Times.
GOP senators are rejecting the idea of bolting strict new voting restrictions laid out in the SAVE Act onto a massive Iran war spending bill, imperiling its odds of survival, a new report reads. The report described the bill as “a product that no one really likes.”
House Republican leaders unveiled a roughly $95 billion funding package this week that would steer up to $73 billion to the military, $12 billion to farmers, and $10 billion toward enforcing the voting overhaul that Trump has championed, the Times reported.
The House GOP leaders hope to muscle it through the filibuster-proof reconciliation process and dodge Democratic opposition, but it’s drawing fire from their own party, according to the Times. GOP senators voiced fresh opposition to the voting measure on Capitol Hill on Thursday.
“It’s a waste of time,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said. “It’s an exercise in futility. And those are the only positive things I can think of to say about it.”
The SAVE Act would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and sharply curb mail voting. However, the Times noted that it may not even qualify for reconciliation because provisions must directly affect spending or revenue.
GOP senators are also revolting against the war funding, with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) saying, “I’m not for new government spending unless it’s offset by cutting other government spending,” according to the Times.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said that GOP senators had questions about whether “the juice” needed to push the House measure through was “worth the squeeze,” the Times reported, noting that it would deliver far less than the $350 billion that Trump originally demanded.
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