President Donald Trump has held his fire since senators skipped town for five weeks without advancing his elections security bill. Some Republicans don’t expect that to last.
Senators punted until at least September any vote on a framework for a third party-line spending bill that includes parts of the SAVE America Act, rather than hold a failed vote.
Whether Trump accepts that explanation is entirely unclear.
Some Republicans privately are prepared for the mercurial president’s yearslong obsession with the election measure to resurface over the recess and risk further inflaming the party’s base just months before GOP senators need those same voters to turn out.
“That would be consistent with his approach,” Sen. Mike Rounds said about the possibility. But “we also know the votes aren’t there,” he added.
Senate conservatives tried different ways to appease the president before leaving.
Budget Chair Ron Johnson said they spoke directly with Trump before pulling the plug on any vote as they struggled to corral support to advance a budget resolution. Johnson said Trump blessed delaying the vote to September.
And Majority Leader John Thune called up a vote on a simpler voter ID bill that unifies the GOP conference, rather than the more complex SAVE America Act that includes provisions restricting mail-in voting, for example, that some in the party don’t support.
Still, some Republicans don’t believe it’ll be enough to satisfy Trump given his relentless focus on nixing the filibuster and passing the election bill, a hardball strategy that there also isn’t sufficient support for within the conference.
One GOP senator, who requested anonymity to speak candidly, said Thune wanted to hold a vote on the voter ID bill because “he thinks it will give us cover with the president.”
“I think he’s wrong,” the senator added.
Asked if he thought the voter ID bill vote would satisfy Trump, Thune said in an interview “good question, but I think if they want votes, we’ll try and get votes, but I can’t guarantee outcomes.”
Sen. Mike Lee and other conservatives continue trying to twist the conference’s arm, vowing to “keep fighting” for the GOP bill and to renew the effort once the chamber returns.
But Trump and his allies’ continued focus on legislation that doesn’t have the votes to pass has frustrated many Republicans, who worry that strategy is sowing division rather than uniting the party against Democrats that they need to defeat.
“I hear what the administration is saying,” Sen. Thom Tillis said. “I look at political data almost every day of the week. …I don’t see [the SAVE America Act] as one of the major factors that are going to get out to the polls.”
What else we’re watching:
— HOURS LEFT FOR MILLER DROP-OUT WATCH: Rep. Max Miller has less than 12 hours to drop out of his race and let Ohio party leaders replace his name on the November ballot. So far, Miller is signaling that’s not going to happen. The Ohio Republican has until 4 p.m. Monday to drop out of his race for reelection in the Cleveland suburb district. But Miller has remained defiant amid allegations of domestic abuse from Emily Moreno, his ex-wife and the daughter of Ohio GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno.
— HEGSETH FAILS TO WIN GOP BUDGET SUPPORT — Senators began their break no closer to enacting the crown jewel of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s agenda: a record-breaking $1.5 trillion defense budget. Hegseth hasn’t persuaded Republicans to steamroll Democrats and advance the money in a party-line plan, despite regularly trekking to the Hill and hobnobbing with lawmakers. Instead, an increasingly vocal group of GOP lawmakers argue the administration hasn’t explained why Republicans should burn valuable political capital in pursuit of Trump’s vision — especially with the midterms just months away.
Jordain Carney, Mia McCarthy, Connor O’Brien and Mark Satter contributed to this report.
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