Trump Won His Second Reconciliation Battle – Now He Wants a Third

The new bill would go toward developing the president’s “Golden Dome” plan and would cover the manufacturing of F-47s and B-21s to “supercharge our ammunition stockpiles.” These are the latest sixth-generation stealth fighters (F-47s), which the Air Force plans to hold the first flights of around 2028 and put into general operation in the early 2030s, and the bombers (B-21s), which were first flown in late 2023 and should arrive at their first operational bases in 2027. President Trump called the bill the “ONLY path to the full $1.5 TRILLION DOLLAR Military Budget our Warriors need in order to build THE ARSENAL OF FREEDOM.”

But the president is also pushing Republicans to add language to the bill that would include the SAVE America Act, a major part of what remains of his legislative agenda. The SAVE America Act would require showing photo ID to vote in person – already the law in many red states, but this would federalize the requirement across the nation – and require showing proof of US citizenship at the point of registration.

As Liberty Nation News has pointed out multiple times before, most polling shows this is something supported by a majority of voters. “While the term ’80-20’ issue is pervasive and oft overused, in this instance, it is right on the button. A full 80% of Americans polled favored ‘requiring a photo I.D. to vote,’” LNN Editor-in-Chief Mark Angelides explained back in March. “The bill also requires showing proof of citizenship to register to vote. On this matter, while not in the fabled 80-20 zone, fully two thirds (66%) approve.”

It has not, however, been that popular in Congress. The Republican majorities of both chambers supported the bill as a standalone. The House passed it 218-213, but then the Senate failed to clear it. With just 51 senators out of the necessary 60 supporting it (Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski voted with Democrats, which is not at all uncommon for her), the bill never saw its final vote. Republicans on March 26 did finally test their left-wing colleagues’ claims that they supported voter ID by itself by putting just that part up for a vote. The new, “light” version would have even included an allowance for “provisional” ballots that could be filled out and submitted without ID, then verified later. Naturally, Democrats opposed it to a man, with the final vote being a party-line 53-47.

For a time, then, it seemed SAVE America was dead in the water. Both attempts in the Senate at adding it to this most recent reconciliation bill failed, with multiple Republicans voting against both.

But Could It Happen?

Numerous Republicans in both chambers have spoken out against a third reconciliation bill, in one way or another. During a hearing on the Air Force’s budget request, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), Senate Appropriations Committee Chair and seemingly perpetual thorn in Trump’s side, called the idea a “terrible risk” that’s likely to create funding instability for defense efforts. Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee Chair Mitch McConnell (R-KY) opposed it as well, saying: “I think it’s safe to conclude there will not be another reconciliation bill.”

Adding the election security measure, however, brings even more Republican resistance. “The SAVE America Act didn’t even get 50 votes last week on the floor of the Senate,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said. “Even if you confine it to just the two issues of photo ID and citizenship in order to register to vote, on those two issues, it takes 60 votes in the Senate. The only way to get there is to undo or get rid of the legislative filibuster, and there aren’t even close to the votes here in the United States Senate to achieve that.”

In the lower chamber, House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-MO) warned he won’t get behind the new reconciliation bill – with or without voting regulations included – unless it has something tax-related. “I won’t support it unless tax is in it,” Smith said in an interview Tuesday morning. “I have not been notified whether tax is part of reconciliation yet,” he added. “I’d love for the speaker to say tax is going to be a part of it.” But adding tax issues, other House Republicans worry, could open the door for Democrats in the Senate to force floor votes on health care amendments that could put already vulnerable GOP senators in the hot seat just before midterms.

But could it still happen?

To answer that hypothetical, it’s best to consider what just did happen. Numerous Senate Republicans pushed back on the most recent reconciliation bill – already an extremely controversial item in and of itself as the culmination of an immigration battle that has raged all year. Some refused to support the SAVE America Act as an amendment to it. Others still supported Democrat (and in some cases even Republican) amendments to block President Trump’s anti-weaponization fund or to disallow spending on the new White House ballroom.

Yet every member of the Senate GOP but Sen. Lisa Murkowski voted to pass the Reconciliation bill unamended. In the House, numerous Republicans had refused quite loudly to pass the Senate’s reconciliation bill if it didn’t include language to block the anti-weaponization fund. Well, it didn’t include such language – yet pass it they did. Sure, about a dozen conservatives initially held out on voting to hold debate on the bill on Tuesday. Ultimately, however, they all voted for it. As one Republican reportedly told MS NOW on condition of anonymity, “a lot of us would like to see the weaponization fund be killed and buried forever.” But, he added, “not funding border patrol and ICE is, I think, unhelpful. Holding something hostage for something on weaponization, I think, would be difficult to achieve, especially since the Senate’s already passed it.”

In the end, it seemed to come down to a matter of priorities – how badly they wanted to block this funding or that additional regulation vs how much they wanted to fund ICE and CBP. This so-called reconciliation 3.0 bill is largely the same situation. How badly do they want to not include the SAVE America Act – or think that it won’t pass muster – vs holding up defense spending? Republicans in both chambers grumbled before passing the Secure America Act, and they grumbled after. But pass it they did. And it may not be so outlandish after all to suggest they’ll do the same next time.

What is a reconciliation bill?

A reconciliation bill is a special procedure that allows the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster rule to be bypassed – but only on certain types of fiscal issues.

How does a reconciliation bill work?

Reconciliation bills pass by a simple majority (51 votes) and can’t be filibustered – but there are a few catches. The legislation is limited to only provisions that directly affect federal spending, revenues, or the debt ceiling; it’s subject to unlimited amendments up to a certain time limit; and it can only be used so many times.

How often can a reconciliation bill be used?

Reconciliation can technically be used three times per fiscal year – once for federal spending, once for the statutory debt limit, and once for taxes – but, because of the difference between calendar years and fiscal years, there could be more in a single legislative session. Most of the time, however, it’s used only once or twice a year.