Durbin Speaks Against Republicans’ So-Called SAVE America Act

Durbin Speaks Against Republicans' So-Called SAVE America Act

Contrary to the bill's name, this legislation would disenfranchise millions of eligible voters with extreme voter ID requirements

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, spoke against Republicans' SAVE America Act, which would make it more difficult for millions of Americans to vote. On Sunday, President Trump said he would not sign any legislation until Congress passes this bill.

"Amidst a war in the Middle East and DHS funding negotiations, the President of the United States now insists that the SAVE America Act should be our number one priority, our only priority. He made it clear," Durbin said. "Don't let the name of this bill fool you. The SAVE America Act would not protect our elections. Instead, it would make it more difficult for millions of Americans to vote."

Durbin importantly noted that it is already illegal for noncitizens to vote, and election officials are required to verify all registered voters' citizenship status. Republicans' SAVE America Act creates serious burdens for all Americans registering to vote by requiring all Americans to show documentary proof of citizenship when they register to vote. Driver's licenses and other government-issued IDs alone would not be sufficient to register to vote. And REAL IDs do not meet the bill's requirements of proving citizenship. According to a nonpartisan study by the Brennan Center and the University of Maryland, more than 21 million Americans who are eligible to vote-or about one out of every ten voting age citizens-do not have documents readily available to prove their citizenship.

"The system works," Durbin said. "According to the conservative Heritage Foundation-and you can look this up online-from 2003 to 2023, 20 years, do you know how many non-American citizens they caught voting in 20 years? Twenty-four. Twenty-four people were ineligible for voting in a 20-year period of time-24 cases. The SAVE America Act would upend the past two decades of successfully secure elections with dangerous, untested limitations on voter registration."

Durbin continued, "Suddenly, providing your driver's license-even if REAL ID compliant-will no longer be enough to register to vote. Nor would military IDs be sufficient for service members… Under this legislation, election officials would accept a limited number of documents, and this could prevent millions of Americans from being eligible to vote in November. Why would the President of the United States be pushing so hard for a bill which will make it difficult to vote? Because he's worried as hell about the outcomes of this election. He thinks he's going to lose… it is that simple."

Durbin concluded, "Making Americans fill out more paperwork will not secure our elections. This bill only makes it harder for women, members of our military, and seniors to participate in the democratic process. The President says he won't allow us to send any bill to him to be signed into law until we pass this law denying the right to vote to millions of Americans in November-that's what the whole issue is about."

Video of Durbin's remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Audio of Durbin's remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Footage of Durbin's remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.

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