The White House warned that the president's "patience is running out" as Republican leaders struggle to move the contentious voting legislation forward before lawmakers depart for recess in August. President Donald Trump's criticism of Senate Majority Leader John Thune over the stalled SAVE America Act intensified on Thursday.
Trump wants "as much of the SAVE America (Act) passed as possible" before senators depart Washington, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, citing comments the president made on Wednesday at a rally in Georgia.
At a White House briefing on Thursday, Leavitt stated, "Look, the president spoke about this directly yesterday, his patience is running out."
In order to register to vote in federal elections, the SAVE America Act would demand proof of US citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate. It also contains clauses that allow noncitizens to be removed from federal voter registration lists.
The bill's opponents claim that it could limit voting access by erecting needless obstacles that would make it more difficult to register to vote and unfairly deny legitimate voters their right to vote.
Trump called the Senate "a place that you send things when you want them to die" and urged fans to put pressure on Thune during the rally in Georgia on Wednesday.
"Call John Thune, everyone." Trump stated, "Tell him to get this stuff approved because he is the Republican Party's leader."
Thune retaliated against the White House's criticism, claiming that the plan does not have enough support to pass the Senate and recommending that the administration concentrate its efforts on convincing legislators.
Thune told reporters at the Capitol on Thursday, "They might think about going after the people who are stopping it on the floor, which is the Democrats, instead of, you know, pointing the finger at Republicans." "And call any Republicans they believe are reachable. Let's persuade them to agree.
Thune has stated time and time again that there is not enough support for the SAVE America Act to pass the Senate. To get the 60 votes required to break a filibuster, the bill would need Democratic backing.
An alternative would be for members to vote to end the legislative filibuster for this bill. This could be accomplished with 50 GOP votes, but it is opposed by more than half of the conference.
Despite the president's complaints, Thune told CNN's Manu Raju that he had "fairly regular" conversations with Trump, adding, "With me, it's more on an as-needed basis."
Even as GOP senators defended Thune's leadership, the discussion revealed mounting tensions between the White House and Senate Republicans over the proposal.
Thune continues to have widespread support among Senate Republicans, according to Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, who stated that there was no debate of removing the majority leader during the conference.
"We're not discussing that. Kennedy remarked, "I haven't heard anyone discuss that."
Kennedy claimed Thune was not to blame for the bill's impasse, but he acknowledged that both Trump and Leavitt were frustrated with its lack of advancement.
Kennedy stated, "I've seen no indication that Senator Thune does not support the SAVE Act – and to be more precise, John Thune supports the SAVE Act, but we have some members who do not."
And for that reason, God created votes. We cast our votes four or five times, but they were unsuccessful. I'm prepared to cast another ballot and try reconciliation once again, but once more, you can't and we can't do that unless we take it up," he continued.
