It’s official, and Washington is in chaos. Do you know what this means for your vote?
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Republican majority in the Senate rejected a GOP-led effort to attach key provisions of election integrity legislation sought by President Donald Trump to a measure funding agencies of the Department of Homeland Security during an early Thursday morning vote. The amendment failed by a vote of 48 to 50.
Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, and Mitch McConnell of Kentucky joined all Democrats in opposing the attachment of a modified version of the SAVE America Act to the bill funding immigration enforcement. Their defection occurred during the Senate’s lengthy “vote-a-rama,” a period in which lawmakers can propose votes on a wide range of amendments regardless of alignment with the main budget plan.
The outcome highlighted warnings from several Republicans in recent weeks that the proposal lacked sufficient support within the GOP to pass. Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota had initiated an oral filibuster to advance the measure with a simple majority of 50 votes. Nevertheless, Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana advocated for his version of the SAVE America Act and threatened to delay the process until Thursday.
Kennedy acknowledged that his approach might not align with the strict Senate rules governing the reconciliation process, known as the Byrd Rule, but argued that critics “can’t predict the future.” Had Kennedy’s proposal been adopted, it would have directed the Senate Rules Committee to draft legislation requiring voter ID for federal elections, limiting voting to Election Day, and mandating that ballots be counted within 36 hours. The plan also included a $10 billion cap for implementing those changes. The Senate Rules Committee, chaired by McConnell, would have been responsible for developing the legislation.
Collins previously said she supports the broader SAVE America Act but did not back this version of the proposal. Murkowski and Tillis also expressed opposition following the Republican-led push to advance the measure. Tillis and McConnell are both retiring after the midterm elections.
President Trump has consistently advocated for the passage of the SAVE America Act. Last month, he pledged not to sign any other bills until it is approved and stated that he would not accept a diluted version. Kennedy’s unsuccessful attempt occurred at a time when discussion surrounding the SAVE America Act had lost focus in the Senate in recent weeks. The Senate floor has been largely dominated by the GOP’s reconciliation gamble, efforts to reauthorize the nation’s contentious surveillance powers, and the ongoing war in Iran.
Nevertheless, Republican leadership currently has no plans to conclude its takeover of the floor. Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson and McConnell have come out in support of Trump’s actions in Iran, even amid the president’s online statements threatening to practically wipe out Iran. McConnell, when asked about Trump’s comments, said he supports Trump’s efforts in Iran. “They’ve been at war with us for 47 years,” McConnell said. “They’ve killed Americans. They’ve killed Israelis. They’ve killed throughout the Middle East. They’re bad guys.” McConnell said he does not know how the conflict in Iran will end. However, he stated that the country’s capabilities have “significantly diminished.”
When Pope Leo XIV criticized the Iran war on Wednesday, Johnson used centuries-old Christian theological teachings to defend the Trump administration’s strikes against Tehran, calling them a “just war.”
The SAVE America Act would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections, strengthen voter identification rules, and expand federal involvement in maintaining voter rolls. Polling has consistently shown broad public support for such requirements across party lines. The failed amendment vote reflects ongoing partisan divisions over election procedures, immigration enforcement funding, and the use of the reconciliation process. The Senate continues to navigate multiple high-stakes deadlines, with lawmakers weighing national security, fiscal priorities, and electoral integrity measures as the midterm cycle approaches.
Further attempts to advance voter ID provisions or related election integrity measures may occur in subsequent legislative vehicles. The outcome of the vote-a-rama has drawn attention to internal Republican dynamics and the challenges of achieving consensus on contentious policy riders during budget negotiations. Both parties are expected to continue debating the balance between security, access, and administrative feasibility in federal elections.
Republican-Controlled U.S. House of Representatives Passes Major Legislation With a 265 to 148 Vote That Would De
The GOP-controlled House passed a measure that would require the federal government to deport any illegal immigrant who assaults a police officer over the objections of a majority of Democrats.
The legislation passed with a vote of 265 to 148, with 54 Democrats siding with the GOP. The Detain and Deport Illegal Aliens Who Assault Cops Act is the name of the legislation, which Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J., is leading.
“There is no reason that an illegal alien who attacks our law enforcement should remain in our country; that shows zero respect for our rule of law or our institutions, and they will not be positive contributors to society,” Van Drew said.
The bill mandates that federal authorities hold illegal immigrants in custody until deportation. It also establishes a new category of migrant inadmissibility, specifically targeting illegal immigrants accused of assaulting police, according to Van Drew.
After the bill passed, Rep. Tom Emmer, the House Majority Whip and No. 3 Republican, said, “House Democrats just voted to protect violent, illegal immigrants over our brave law enforcement officers. Once again, the Democrat Party proves they are the most anti-law enforcement party in history.”
A stunning new poll from CNN shows the Democratic Party lagging far behind the Republicans when it comes to economic issues, which stunned CNN data guru Harry Enten.
After months of the Democrats and their media allies trying to scare Americans about Trump’s tariff proposals, the data analyst was taken aback by the failure of their propaganda.
“You would think after all of the waves, Kate Bolduan, after the last few months, the first five months of the Donald Trump presidency, right, the first four months of the Donald Trump presidency, that you’d expect that Democrats would have this massive lead on the economy. It ain’t so. It ain’t so,” he said to CNN anchor Kate Bolduan.
“The party that is closest to your economic views. In November of 2023, it was the Republicans by 11 points. Now it’s still within that range, still within that margin of error, plus eight point advantage for the Republican Party,” the data analyst said.
“How is that possible, Democrats? How is that possible after all the recession fears, after the stock markets been doing all of this, after all the tariffs that Americans are against, and Republicans still hold an eight point lead on the economy. Are you kidding me?” he said.
“How is that — when we look for trends, how is that trending with other data that you’re pulling in?” the anchor inquired.
“Yes, if it was just this one CNN poll, that would be one thing. But take a look at Reuters/IPSOS. What do we see here? Party with a better economic plan. Well in May of 2024, just before Donald Trump was re-elected president, Republicans had a nine point advantage,” Enten said.
“Look at where we are now in May of 2025. The advantage actually went up by three points. Now Republicans have a 12-point advantage when it comes to the party with a better economic plan. And again, this is after months of economic — supposed economic uncertainty in which the stock market’s been going bonkers, in which the tariff wars that Americans are against have been going on. And yet, despite all of that, the Democrats are down by 12 points on the economy. This speaks to Democratic problems on the economy better than basically anything that you could possibly look at,” the stunned data analyst said.
“The Republicans still hold an advantage on the all-important key issue of the day. And that is the reason why, even if Donald Trump’s approval ratings are a little bit lower than they used to be, Republicans are not out of the ballgame because they still have a clear advantage on the economy, whether you look at CNN’s polls or whether you look at the IPSOS poll right here in which they have a 12-point advantage on the economy,” he said.
He also said Republicans have taken a stronghold on the middle-class vote.
“Anti-Trump RINO Gets Devastating News Just Before Primary Race — He’s DONE!”
Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie is fighting for his political life less than two weeks before his hotly contested GOP primary. Massie’s frequent rebellions against President Donald Trump and the Republican Party writ large are catching up to him as he faces his toughest reelection in over a decade.
For years, local Republicans have been itching to remove Massie because they believe he has been more concerned with spending bills, foreign conflicts, and the Jeffrey Epstein files than with prioritizing Kentucky.
Now that the president is finally leading former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein as Massie’s primary opponent, many Republicans see this as their best chance to defeat him since he was elected in 2012.
“He’s a Democrat in a Republican hat. … He takes credit for stuff that he says he’s a part of, but everybody knows he’s not,” said Randy Berling, a Republican from nearby Melbourne.
When asked who he planned to vote for in the May 19 primary, “Not this guy,” he said, adding that “everyone I know” is saying the same thing.
A few public polls of the campaign reveal that Massie is ahead of Gallrein by a modest amount, which suggests that Trump’s support has certain limits.
Gallrein, a farmer and previous state Senate candidate, has never run for federal office before and doesn’t have a lot of name recognition in the district. Some people who don’t like Massie are frightened that they won’t be able to get rid of him now or ever.
“In my heart of hearts, I think Massie may win,” said Steve Frank, a former commissioner of Covington, a major Cincinnati suburb and the largest city in northern Kentucky, who has grown critical of the incumbent over Israel and local matters and is backing Gallrein. “And if he can withstand this, who’s coming after him?”
The Boone County Republican Party recently voted 50-28 to uphold a rule requiring neutrality in contested primaries. The move has gone viral on social media as Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie is facing a contested primary election on May 19th.
President Donald Trump is backing former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein in the Republican primary in Kentucky’s 4th District — a revenge mission after Massie pushed to release the Jeffrey Epstein files and opposed the president on other key votes.
“Massie is a complete and total disaster as a congressman and, frankly, as a human being,” Trump said last month at an event in the district where Gallrein joined him onstage.
In areas like Grant County, where the president won with more than 80% of the vote in the 2024 election, Massie hopes to make Trump less of an afterthought as he battles for his political survival.
His longtime supporters must have faith in this endeavor. Massie, who was first elected in 2012, was able to present his case for why he still deserves it at last week’s GOP dinner, where guests gathered inside a special events barn and chose from a buffet of beef and potatoes, green beans, and salad.
“I read the bills. I try to make the decision based on what is best. I try to do the things that I campaigned on,” Massie told them. “And sometimes it means voting no.”
Massie then took a swipe at Gallrein, who had been invited and expected to speak at the dinner but canceled at the last minute. A spokesperson said he had two funerals to attend.
“The problem with Washington, D.C., is that you got people that stand at podiums like this and make you all kinds of promises, and then they go up there and go along to get along, and they forget about all the promises,” Massie said. “I’m running against a guy whose main thing is he will promise you he will go along to get along. I don’t think we need a rubber stamp.”
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In response to questions for this article, Gallrein spokesperson Alexandra Wilkes issued a statement that read: “Captain Gallrein is honored that President Trump has been so supportive of his campaign to defeat every liberal’s favorite Republican, Thomas Massie.”
