Democrats in the Senate let another week pass without joining Republicans in funding portions of the Department of Homeland Security, including agents with the Transportation Security Administration. TSA personnel, who are largely in charge of airport security, have missed two paychecks already, after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and his Democratic caucus have repeatedly refused to help Republicans overcome the 60-vote threshold needed to approve new funding.
Now, multi-billionaire Elon Musk has stepped up to offer some relief to TSA personnel as lines and wait times get longer at airport security checkpoints ahead of the summer travel season.
“I would like to offer to pay the salaries of TSA personnel during this funding impasse that is negatively affecting the lives of so many Americans at airports throughout the country,” Musk wrote on his X platform.
Senate Democrats have also unified in complete opposition to the voter ID requirement in the SAVE America Act, an election security measure supported by nearly four-fifths of the American people. The U.S. Senate failed to advance the SAVE America Act after a procedural vote to open debate did not reach the 60-vote threshold required to overcome a filibuster earlier this week.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) was the only Republican to vote against opening debate. The motion to invoke cloture received 51 votes in favor and 48 against. Under Senate rules, most legislation requires 60 votes to proceed. Without bipartisan support, the bill remains stalled.
The SAVE America Act — formally titled the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act — is a top legislative priority for President Donald Trump and Senate Republican leadership. The bill would require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections and mandate photo identification at the polls. It also includes provisions restricting mail-in voting to specific circumstances, such as military service, illness, disability, or travel.
Republican supporters have described the legislation as essential to strengthening election integrity ahead of the midterm elections. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has brought the bill to the floor despite acknowledging publicly that Republicans do not currently have the 60 votes needed for passage.
This is in part because Thune has lacked the political will to ‘nuke’ the zombie filibuster and move to a talking filibuster, despite acknowledging that Senate Democrats might do this very thing if they retake the Senate.
President Trump has framed the legislation as critical, calling it “one of the most IMPORTANT & CONSEQUENTIAL pieces of legislation in the history of Congress” and urging lawmakers to pass it before November’s elections.
Several conservative senators have warned that failure to act could dampen enthusiasm among Republican voters. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) said there is a “very significant risk” that GOP base voters may disengage if the party does not demonstrate progress on election security.
Lee has argued that states conducting voter roll reviews have identified thousands of potentially ineligible registrations and questioned why some Democratic-led states have declined to share voter registration data with federal officials.
Democrats have strongly opposed the bill, arguing that documented instances of noncitizens voting in federal elections are rare and that the proposed requirements would disenfranchise eligible voters.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called the measure “one of the most pernicious pieces of legislation” he has seen and argued that it would make voter registration more burdensome than obtaining certain firearms.
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) pledged to block the legislation, saying Democrats were prepared to remain on the Senate floor “as long as necessary” to prevent its passage.
Republican supporters argue there is an urgent need to implement the legislation. They point to municipalities in states such as Maryland, Vermont, and California, as well as Washington, D.C., that permit noncitizen residents to vote in certain local elections. They argue federal safeguards are needed to ensure separation between local allowances and federal ballot access.