White House Says SAVE Act Passage Most Likely After Election, But Keeps Pressure On Senate

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The White House now believes that the SAVE America Act may not pass until after the midterm elections, though it is keeping the pressure on Leader John Thune to act as soon as possible.

It is now eyeing a lame-duck session to secure victory on the election integrity bill, a White House official tells the Daily Signal.

“With respect to the way that the Senate has to process the budget resolution, the bulk of these conversations are probably going to be post-election,” the official said. “But we’re working very hard to continue to sell the SAVE America Act and continuing to see that advanced, and the form that it can be advanced in reconciliation to get as much of the bill as possible in a reconciliation configuration.”

Nevertheless, the official said the conversation around the voter ID and proof of citizenship legislation has become “bigger” and “robust.”

The Senate is currently on recess and scheduled to be in session for only three weeks before Election Day.

In the meantime, the failure of Democrats to back the measure is political gold for Republicans in the midterms, who will force their opponents to own their vote.

“There was a very interesting vote and a very telling vote, where the bulk of them voted against stock trading and voter ID requirements and citizenship requirements and voter ID requirements, and that type of radicalism that the Democrats have decided to pursue is definitely going to be on the ballot,” the official said.

Reconciliation is the favored vehicle for passing the SAVE America Act because it requires 50, instead of the usual 60, votes. The House passed a budget framework that included SAVE America on July 22, but the Senate broke for recess before doing its part. Reconciliation is most likely to be finalized in the lame-duck session, the period after the midterms and before the next Congress begins, the official said.

The White House is “looking forward to seeing what the Senate can do” on reconciliation, the official said.

“There was a successful House vote on a budget resolution,” the official noted. “The Senate has yet to act on it, and we’re looking forward to seeing ultimately what they can accomplish, probably post this period, and seeing what they can move.”

“You’re going to see a more expansive reconciliation bill that deals with some of the other policy objectives that have been at the forefront with respect to both administration priorities and with respect to deficit reduction,” according to the official.

Before this Congress ends, the White House would like to see movement on the cryptocurrency bill, sanctions on Russia, and a bill to protect college sports, according to the official.

The Protect College Sports Act would limit transfers per athlete, introduce a hard cap on eligibility to five years, and prohibit former professional athletes from re-enrolling and playing in college.

“The president’s been clear about his perspective on ensuring that college sports remain the vibrant and uniquely American institution that they are,” the official said, “and the competitiveness and the operations of the leagues and their relationship with the players and their relationship with the schools are very important, and continuing to maintain that is critical.”

Trump posted on Truth Social in June urging “the House and Senate to come together to pass a final bipartisan Law, that I can sign this summer, that reflects the views and input of both Chambers.”

“WE HAVE TO SAVE COLLEGE SPORTS! ” he said.

The Senate Commerce Committee advanced the bill on June 18, but Thune has not yet committed to bring it to the floor for a vote.

Trump has also urged Congress to pass a “fair version of the Clarity Act,” which creates clear rules for cryptocurrencies and digital assets. It is currently stalled in the Senate.

“Making America the crypto capital of the world and avoiding this type of financial activity moving to China is an incredibly important objective,” the official said.

The official said Congress has the opportunity to pass “one of the most substantial America First economic nationalist bills in the form of the Lindsay O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026.” The bill passed the Senate 86–11 in August, but has not yet passed the House.

The White House hopes the House, which has returned for a single week from recess, will take it up and pass it.

Additionally, Cabinet member Keith Sonderling, Trump’s nominee to replace Lori Chavez DeRemer as labor secretary, has not been confirmed yet. The White House hopes the Senate can move “expeditiously” to confirm Trump nominees, including Sonderling, the official said.

“They they have a cabinet official that’s slated for confirmation,” the official said, “and we’d hope to see him confirmed expeditiously.”

The White House will continue to “set the pace” for Congress, the official said.

“We’re going to continue to set the pace and try to create a strong demand signal and see what the Senate and the House and the leadership of Leader Thune and the speaker are able to accomplish,” the official said.

The administration is also looking for Congress to “advance important Republican legislation that lowers overall costs.”

“The bulk of the conversation is going to be centered around what Republicans have done, and that record is is so strong,” the official said, adding that Republicans should talk about economic wins in the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, including no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, an expanded child tax credit, and an expanded standard deduction.  

“These are all things that obtain directly on the affordability conversation,” the official said, “and certainly should obtain directly in our Republicans’ message and work towards what we think is going to be a great election for the congressional Republicans.”