I am pleased to report, the SAVE Act Is Dead.
Do Any of the Cheerleaders Understand How a Talking Filibuster Works?
The senators probably do, but mostly don’t care. For them it’s just a silly show.
The public cheerleaders are overwhelmingly clueless.
There Reasons the Save Act Is Dead
- There is no majority to end the filibuster
- A talking filibuster would fail
- Even if by some miracle it passed, the Supreme Court would strike it
Five Republican Senators Against Ending the Filibuster
- Senate Majority Leader John Thune – “Ending the filibuster would be a “Grave Error”
- Kevin Cramer – Strongly Against
- Lisa Murkowski – Firmly Against
- Susan Collins – Firmly Against
- Roger Marshall – Generally Opposed
Senate Math
It takes 51 votes, not 50, to kill the filibuster. The Vice President has no role in this. That means three of the above five would have to change their minds.
There is zero chance of that.
Q: What about replacing Thune?
A: That was one of the more idiotic ideas that surfaced on X. Look at the above list and add a few more.
Two Flips
Two republicans already did flip.
Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and John Cornyn of Texas flipped. So what?
Cornyn is locked in a primary runoff battle with Ken Paxton, seeking Trump’s endorsement. This is foolish because Trump may easily throw him under the bus.
If the bill does not pass, and it won’t, Trump is likely to blame Cornyn.
Johnson Proposes Vote to Nix Filibuster
Politico reports GOP senator proposes vote to nix filibuster amid elections bill debate
Sen. Ron Johnson said Thursday he wants the Senate to vote on nixing the legislative filibuster, as an effort to convince fellow Republicans to bypass it altogether is running into a brick wall.
“If we do go to a cloture vote [on the election bill], immediately after that we ought to vote on ending the filibuster,” Johnson told reporters, referring to the 60-vote threshold.
That vote, too, would fail to garner the necessary support, but Johnson said his position was, “let’s get people on the record” — including Democrats, many of whom have previously supported weakening the 60-vote filibuster.
Put them on record!
That is another often repeated idiocy on X.
The Senators are already on record. I listed the record above.
Senator Lee
Johnson, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and other conservatives had previously pitched invoking a talking filibuster because it wouldn’t require a formal rules change. It has, however, sparked widespread concern inside the party that the maneuver would backfire and allow Democrats to eat up months of the legislative calendar before the midterms.
Johnson acknowledged Thursday that a “true talking filibuster” would also allow Democrats to force amendment votes, which could put vulnerable GOP incumbents in a tough spot — and that the process the Senate will use instead will still put Democrats on the record over the GOP elections bill.
Lee also appeared to acknowledge in a video he posted to X late Wednesday night that the talking filibuster gambit was a no-go, but urged Republicans to delay a final, 60-vote cloture motion for as long as possible to try to put pressure on Democrats to relent.
It’s amazing to see Lee throw in the towel. It appears Thune has talked some sense into Lee’s head.
How a Talking Filibuster Works
In a talking filibuster, the minority party, in this case the Democrats, would be able to tie up all business in the Senate by talking for as long as possible.
Only one or two Democrats would need to be on the floor at any time. The burden would fall on Republicans to stick together to strike dilatory motions and problematic amendments.
A talking filibuster would be a 100 percent sleep-in for all the Republican Senators while Democrats could take turns holding the podium. And I doubt there are 50 votes in the first place.
In addition, a “true talking filibuster” would also allow Democrats to force amendment votes, which could put vulnerable GOP incumbents in a tough spot.
The political illiterates on X cheer for this.
Polymarket Odds
- 1% Chance by March 31
- 6% Chance by June 30
Details H.R. 7296 (SAVE America Act) becomes law by…?
If Republicans wish to make asses out of themselves, they will do a talking filibuster.
What the Save Act Is Really About
Attorney Jenny Cohn has done an amazing job with this issue. Please follow and thank her.
More from Jenny Cohn
More on the Save Act
Additional Requirement on Women
Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski
Blame Trump
Blowhard Mark Meadows
Stop All Legislation?!
Those With Trump Worship Syndrome
Luna cy
You have to be seriously delusional to post that.
Lie of the Day
That’s the lie of the day from the world’s biggest liar.
I am pleased to report this stupid idea will be over next week with all the blowhards backtracking on idiotic proclamations of stopping all legislation until the Save Act passes.
But if by some chance this bill passed, (it won’t), the Supreme Court would squash it because it is unconstitutional three ways.
Not that any Republicans care about the constitution anymore, but I discuss three reasons the act is unconstitutional in SAVE Act Silliness: Trump’s “Go for the Gold” Killed It
Regardless, the point is moot. Senate math alone says the Save At is dead.
And if Trump is stupid enough to try this by Executive Order, it is 100 percent certain the courts would strike it.
Interesting Observation
Thune set the vote up for Wednesday rather than Tuesday because he knows it will fail and it is the day AFTER the drop out deadline in Texas runoff so John Cornyn can’t drop out at that point after Cornyn will have failed to deliver the SAVE AMERICA ACT.
That likely ensures a nasty primary fight. Trump said he would pick one and expect the other to drop. So, will Trump pick by Tuesday?
More from Matthew Boyle
Boyle is Washington Bureau Chief for Breitbart News Network
A Sensible Act Addendum
This keeps coming up. I have already stated what I support.
- A sensible voter ID requirement and Driver’s License is sufficient
- Only Citizens Can Vote
That’s it. Such a bill would not suppress female or minority voting so Republicans don’t want it.
As for mail-in voting, that is Constitutionally up to the states and some Republican governors oppose.
Q: What would a sensible bill accomplish?
A: Nothing, except counter Trump lies about stealing an election.
MAGA Republicans don’t want a sensible bill for obvious reasons.
Regarding My Sleep-In Statement
It’s not who votes that matters. It is who counts them. – Josef Stalin
Ahhh who the fuck cares? You all vote for the uniparty anyway and any differences between elephants and horses are minor, minor, minor. Trump the worst leader in living memory and the Congress the most corrupt in living memory.
“One person, one vote” accountability is how an honest person would run things. Math is not hard. It is inconvenient. People who want to run the world on “feelings” tend not to like math. Good luck in boarding the next airplane that is designed by feelings and intuition without the pesky mathematical accounting to worry about.
The math says you’re wrong.
Government data bases are so bad that NY just issued me a jury duty questionnaire even though the last time I voted in NY was 2016, moved out of the state, have filed no NYS income taxes in the past 7-8 years, cancelled my vehicle registration, and surrendered my NY driver’s license when I applied for a driver’s license in another state.
I will say this about voting in NY, I was asked to show ID and sign the voter record on Election Day.
Instead of pushing the Save Act at all cost, Trump better watch JD Vance. Vance obviously deeply disagrees with the Iran war, and he may well have come to the conclusion that Trump is an Article 25 case.
The Republican governor and Republican legislature instituted mail-in balloting here in the 1990s. They did it to ensure their elderly base voted early. Trump- — who routinely votes by mail —–fucked it all up by telling his cult not to use the mail to vote.
Self-inflicted, stupid and pure Trump.
I vot by mail here. It gives me time to study the ballot and look at every initiative or candidate prior to filling it out and having my wife sign as witness and putting it in the mail.
Then, I can track it on the website until it shows as “Received” at the county.
My wife, on the other hand, likes to vote in person. She goes in, and I can see that my name is removed from the sign-in list, so it is impossible for me to vote a second time.
Mail-in voting is great! Trump really shot himself in the foot in 2020 on this issue, Republicans always used to handily outperform via mail.
Same with my wife and I. We take a lot more time comparing the positions of each candidate at our convenience. Anyone who claims that there is fraud in mail in ballots should try it once.
Mish, thank you for bringing this to our attention.
There is a lot of nuanced and sometimes emotional writing in your post and the comments, so I had to take the SAVE Act link, the link to Jenny Cohn’s Medium article, and ask an AI to assess and compare the statements made in each.
For the sake of truth and honesty, please see for yourself:
https://chatgpt.com/share/69b74160-52c8-800b-b6df-0318cf8b49b8
Where is the scope outside of what we want, i.e., legal votes only?
I used your link, and asked further questions, like “Does the SAVE Act create difficulties for a person whose birth certificate has a different name than their Drivers License, and doesn’t have a passport?”
Chat GPT answered “Yes”.
Obviously this affects way more women than men.
Obviously Trump lost more women’s votes than men.
Obviously this will be a tough hurdle to overcome in a courtroom, due to the requirements of the law, where people have to be treated equally.
“Legal votes only?” That’s not what they want.
Wow, you punch in a question to AI and then act like it is fact and gospel at once. Unquestioning. This is the decline of American intellect right here. Good demonstration of not thinking, Taggart, time to Galt yourself.
OK Mish, you’re gonna reap what you sow on this one. I predict there will be at least “dozens” of fraudulent votes out of tens of millions. I know because a guy named Tom said he spent hundreds of hours on the topic and that’s what he’s concluded and that’s good enough for me.
If that’s the way you want it then there’s nothing I can do but you are gonna reap what you sow.
Just wait till the news hits that dozens of fraudulent votes were cast, how are you going to feel then? Dozens Mish! Dozens! Are you going to be able to sleep at night?
If only we could have spent millions implementing a framework that disenfranchises millions of people so we could save ourselves from those dozens of fraudulent votes. We will look back on this day as the fall of democracy.
I remember when, in Colorado, it was illegal for an election worker to ask you for an id. And somehow our elections were fair. My biggest complaint about election rules was that bars were closed until 1900.
It would pass easily if Netanyahu wanted it. And the WSJ and NY Times would applaud.
You had me at “nothing will be done in Washington, D.C.”.
So, let me see if I’ve got this right:
Nothing will be done in Washington, DC until the SAVE Act passes. The SAVE Act cannot pass. Therefore nothing will be done??
I’m sorry. I don’t see the problem.
Those clowns still getting paid during the circus is one problem.
Farm news:
In a Monday letter to President Donald Trump, American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall warned U.S. farmers are bracing for a system shock due to shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz and the impact on fertilizer availability and prices.
“Like oil, global fertilizer markets are highly vulnerable to disruptions in maritime transit routes, especially through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping corridor for key fertilizer materials and finished fertilizer,” Duvall wrote.
“Further, the recent energy production halts in the Middle East will affect the price and availability of many downstream products farmers depend upon,” Duvall continued. “These supply chain shocks are expected to drive already record-high input prices even higher at a time when farm margins are already extremely tight and many farmers are underwater.”
A Market Intel analysis by AFBF economists reveals the seriousness of the situation, noting large volumes of urea, ammonia, phosphates, sulfur and petroleum produced in Gulf countries move through the Strait of Hormuz.
“Countries exposed to disruption in the region account for nearly 49% of global urea exports and about 30% of global ammonia exports, reflecting the concentration of fertilizer production and export capacity in and near the Persian Gulf,” said Duvall, noting in stark terms the potential consequences of inaction.
Meh…MAGA got what they voted for and they’ll get zero sympathy from me. Let them all go bankrupt and let corporate mega farms buy up all their land and produce highly industrialized frankenfood for the masses that voted for this clown.
Some of us have exit plans and will be eating 100% organic fresh for the rest of our days.
I suspect if there is a “talking filibuster” the Democrats will read the Epstein files into the published record.
Cold blooded, brother.
Another way to spell “Just desserts”
Republicans are a permanent minority party who can only win elections though chicanery like this. In a few years the Republicans will be looking a lot like the Tories in the UK, a rump party unable to win any election.
The GOP is to politics as Harley-Davidson is to motorcycles. A party dedicated to bringing back the 1950s when the people who lived in that era all dying off.
Parties. They ebb and flow. The Tories held the prime minister position from 2010 until 2024. Nothing is “permanent”. I agree that Trump has probably destroyed the Republican brand for years to come – especially with this war. And the same republican congresspeople who took forever to recognize the rise of populism are now stupidly hanging onto Trump. They’ll get their ass handed to them this fall (lose both houses) and probably won’t even diagnose the problem until 2029 at the earliest.
It is notoriously hard to predict what will happen in future elections, in part because we don’t know who the candidates will be. After Obama’s victory in 2012, Chuck Todd proclaimed on Meet the Press that it would be the 2030s before a Republican would again be elected President.
The biggest problem at this point for the Democrats— is the Democrats themselves.
They have managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory over and over lately.
It’s almost as if Trump were trying to deliberately sabotage the SAVE Act by putting in these poison pills which he knew would prevent the Bill from being passed. He’s pretty much betrayed every significant aspect of MAGA in just a few months. This is just one more. And ending illegal immigration? He’s made some progress on that one but his idea is to replace illegal immigration by “legal” immigration- bring in millions of “legal” immigrants from places like India and China to replace millions of high paying American jobs.
Did Trump really want the save Act passed? I suspect that he really doesn’t care–what really matters is do his billionaire Epstein Class donors want the save Act passed? Look at the answer to this question and you will likely find out if trump himself sabotaged the Act. it’s all in the fine print-the devil is in the details. I’m pretty sure Trump has never actually read the Save Act.
China & India? Lol. Trump is opening the border wide open. Trump made ZERO progress, he put on a show for dimwitted MAGA morons who ate it all up and true to form is now going to TACO.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/15/us/politics/farm-labor-trump-migrant-workers-h2a.html
Only 0.4 percent of farmers in California reported losing workers directly to farm raids, according to a new survey by the California Farm Bureau and Michigan State University. But more than 14 percent said the raids and general anxiety surrounding enhanced immigration enforcement caused worker shortages. Among labor-intensive crops like fruit and vegetables, that number was nearly 20 percent.
The Labor Department, in a regulatory filing revamping the H-2A program in October, acknowledged the challenges of finding workers. “The near total cessation of the inflow of illegal aliens combined with the lack of an available legal work force,” it said, “results in significant disruptions to production costs and threatening the stability of domestic food production and prices for U.S. consumers.”
Another major fail for Trump.
Last I heard Trump was welcoming 600,000 Chinese students- a good many of whom will stay in the USA after graduating. As far as Indians– what has he done or even said that would suggest he has any intention of ending the ruinous H1B’s that have continued to come over to totally take over entire IT departments of major Fortune 500 companies replacing American workers- white, black, Hispanic- competent or incompetent-it matters not? I’ll answer it for you-nothing. And these Indian replacements are not cheap. These are 6 figure plus salaries if you count the 30% markups companies like Infosys change their fortune 500 clients. His rhetoric and actions (though toned down in recent months) suggests otherwise. Go look at the numbers for Indian IT companies like Infosys. I haven’t lately, but I am quite certain that if you do look into it with grok or ChatGPT you will find you are wrong.
India is Israel’s new partner. Many are suggesting that India and Trump’s donor class will eventually abandon the USA as their agent or engine that drives globalization. Their new partner as the USA is on the decline and young people are rebelling against Israel. I see many signs this is happening now. Modi severely burned his bridges and harmed India’s interest with the BRICS going forward by essentially allying with Israel and the US against Iran. Trump is just another useful idiot who could care less about MAGA and Americans. He will align with his donors who are making Trump and his family extremely rich.
As far as illegal immigration–I said “some progress”. You can’t credibly deny that we no longer have a half million or so migrants crossing out southern border as we did during the Biden Administration.
Interesting discussion, but facts are CNN reported on February 3 Pew survey that 81% of US favor voter id and voter id is used in some of US, all of Canada, Mexico, all of Europe and Russia. Not in China and other totalitarian regimes. And, DNC central committee like Soviet Politburo selected the fools Harris and Walz without a Primary Election with the same impunity that covers up US ballot fraud 24/7.
All the author’s words justify a fascist state, undemocratic and sticking their thumb in the eye of the Republic for which it stands.
What is the point of citing a voter ID poll when Mish already said he supports voter ID?
Not a good idea to write a comment about an article you haven’t actually read.
That’s not fair to those who can’t read.
Mish, if Congress passed only a requirement that voters present a government-issued ID, would that be constitutional – in light of the Constitution’s requirement that the times, places and manner of elections be determined by the legislatures of the states?
It would be legal if the federal government required ID to vote in FEDERAL elections. They cannot mandate ID for state and local voting, although states can.
Oregon v. Mitchell, 400 U.S. 112 (1970)
The federal government can control the voting process for its own elections but not for state and local elections.
Mish , it woukd be better I think if you gave solutions to tge problems you see in the save act instead of just calling them unconstitutional. You stated you are a supporter of ID and you agree only citizens should be able to vote.
Does something in the act do this ? What changes would you make to accomplish the goal of the bill that you agree with.
Let’s strip it down , take out the unconstitutional language and make a deal. Thats what normal negotiations do when buying a house or any contract people negotiate. A flat out there’s unconstitutional language I’m out isn’t how the congress works , we the people should show them the path forward from citizens that agree with the purpose of the bill. There are thousands of things you would agree with Trump on , like fentanyl should be stopped coming into the country. Trump has his method you probably don’t agree with but what is your method to accomplish this goal. I’m so sick of the child like arguments with no solutions. If you can’t propose a solution then stop whining about someone else stepping up to actually do something
I already posted what I would do.
1) Pass some sensible ID requirement
2) Require only citizens can vote
That is is it. Some Democrats proposed those changes. Republicans rehjected them.
Trump does not want what I suggested.
By the way, such a law would do nothing. But it at least would be sensible.
The unconstitutional parts are the only parts that do the GOP any good.
As noted, the federal government should pass a law that says only citizens have the right to vote in federal elections. It is constitutional for the federal legislature to do that. Then each state has to come up with a system for ensuring that only citizens can vote. If they fail to do so, they can be sued by the Department of Justice. The judiciary will have to determine an appropriate resolution. This approach is how the Founding Fathers set up the country to work. The states still handle the electoral process within a federal legal framework.
Of course, Republicans would never pass a law that simply states that only citizens can vote. What you don’t understand is that it isn’t the goal of the Republican party to change anything. The goal is to make you feel like a victim and that they will resolve your victimhood.
It’s already illegal for anon-citizen to register to vote.
You attest – under penalty of perjury – that you are a citizen.
Perjury can result in penalties up to ten years.
Yes it is clear now you side with The Evil Ones and have no problem with industrialized election theft
Boo! Gonna getcha!
Okay Tom, show us all the evidence of “industrialized election theft” please! I’ll wait.
Now you’ve done it. He’ll disappear for a couple days and come back like nothing happened.
I’ll miss his optimism.
I will put you down for not gonna get it over it.
Anyway, the issue isnt ‘are the elections stolen’, the issue is ‘are our politicians bought and sold’.
and they are. Apparently $200 million buys you a President that will.go to war with Iran after he campaigns on not starting any wars.
how does making me produce a DL help with that?
REAL ID solves all of this
Require ID for voting, after every adult citizen is provided with ID at no cost and at minimal effort. Register everyone as a voter automatically. Simple to do and solved all imagined problems with voter fraud ( because as Mish has made clear earlier, it’s practically non-existent)
That our government is unable to summon the will to make this happen means they ALL are screwing with the voting system in various ways.