President Trump spent the holiday weekend doing what he does best: posting extremely specific demands on social media and daring Republicans to disappoint him. As USA Journal reported, the president wants Reconciliation 3.0, a whopping $350 billion for national defense, and the SAVE America Act. Not polite suggestions. Not a vision board. Marching orders for a Republican Congress that has spent the better part of its historic majority tripping over its own shoelaces.
The $350 billion defense number is earmarked for things like the Golden Dome missile defense system, military modernization, and what Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell framed in terms that should make everyone sit up straight: "The fate of our future military dominance hangs in the balance." That is the kind of sentence that sounds like it belongs in a movie trailer, except it came from an actual government spokesperson talking about actual money the military says it actually needs.
Then there is the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship and photo ID to vote. Polls consistently show most Americans support this idea. Trump wants it stapled to the reconciliation bill. The problem is that Senate Parliamentarian rules make that about as easy as fitting a watermelon through a keyhole. Trump's proposed solution: fire the parliamentarian. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a man who radiates the energy of someone who will absolutely not be firing the parliamentarian, has predictably not fired the parliamentarian.
So what is the GOP alternative? A $4 billion grant program to gently encourage states to maybe possibly consider implementing voter ID on their own time. Journalist Jake Sherman highlighted the gap on July 7, noting that Trump wants $350 billion for the Pentagon, not $67 billion, plus the SAVE Act, while House Republican leaders have been focused on a $4 billion incentive fund. One is a federal mandate. The other is a coupon. Anyone want to guess whether California and New York will be rushing to redeem that coupon? Take your time.
The backdrop here matters. Democrats have already published a resolution laying out plans to kill the filibuster, pack the Supreme Court, and federalize elections if they regain power. They put their names on it. They are not being coy about it. This is not a rumor from an anonymous source. It is a signed document.
So the situation Congress walks back into after recess is pretty straightforward. The president wants defense funding and election integrity legislation. Democrats have a detailed blueprint to reshape the entire system the moment they get the chance. And Republicans are workshopping a voluntary grant program.
Congress returns next week. Trump has told them what he wants in terms a golden retriever could understand. The only remaining question is the one that has defined this majority from day one: will they actually do it, or will they spend six weeks debating it and then pass something that makes everyone feel like they ordered a steak and got a salad.
Read more conservative news commentary at: USA Journal News
