Thune on DHS Funding and SAVE America Act Progress

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WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today spoke at a press conference with Senate Republican leadership:

Thune's remarks below (as delivered):

"Shamefully, we are on day 39 of the Democrat shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security.

"It is increasingly having effects across the country, as our airports and the TSA agents become more and more overrun.

"So it is time to end this. The time to end this is now.

"The Democrats have in front of them a proposal, with legislative text, that would allow us to get DHS back and opened up again, and it is essentially what the Democrats have been asking for.

"And so we're going to have an opportunity to vote on that, and I hope they will put their money where their mouth is, and if they are sincere about actually getting DHS opened up again, that they'll provide the votes and work with us in order to make that happen.

"On the other issue, the SAVE America Act now has been on the floor for some time.

"And it is an issue on which, as we pointed out before, there is overwhelming public support among and across all kinds of demographic groups, age, political party, gender, you name it, Democrat, Republican.

"Overwhelming support for the SAVE America Act, the Democrats said - Chuck Schumer said out here last week - that they support voter ID.

"Well, we're going to give them an opportunity to evidence that by putting it up for a vote.

"Later, I'll be filing an amendment that would require photo ID, and we'll see what the Democrats do.

"What happened last week, as you all know, Senator Husted from Ohio offered a very straightforward voter ID amendment, which was blocked on the floor by the Democrats - and furthermore, wasn't just blocked … the Democrat, Senator Merkley from Oregon, offered a counterproposal that specifically would ban voter ID across this country, and actually something that 36 states already have in place.

"So this is a an issue on which there is broad agreement with the public, and obviously we're going to give the Democrats an opportunity to vote on that one particular issue - and that is whether or not people ought to have to show some form of identification when they go to vote.

"So that's the schedule for the balance of this week, and hopefully we'll have cooperation from Democrats to end the government shutdown."

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