Former President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Republicans in Congress should shut down the government next month.
Trump said that if Democrats won’t agree to legislation barring noncitizens from voting ― something that rarely happens because it’s already illegal ― then Republicans should block legislation funding basic operations of the federal government.
“I would shut down the government in a heartbeat if they don’t get it and if they don’t get it in the bill,” Trump told podcast host Monica Crowley , a Republican operative who served in his administration.
Earlier this month, the far-right House Freedom Caucus took the official position that any government funding bill must include the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act . Among other things, the bill would make states require proof of citizenship for voter registration. (Voter registration forms already require people to attest to their citizenship, under penalty of perjury, per federal law.)
Congress has to pass a spending bill by the end of September to prevent a partial government shutdown that would interrupt a wide variety of departments and services, but not major programs like Social Security and Medicare.
The Freedom Caucus doesn’t have enough members to actually block a clean government funding bill, which would likely pass the House with lots of support from Democrats and Republicans alike. Trump’s support for the SAVE Act could sway some Republicans, but House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who also supports the measure, hasn’t said he would insist on it in a funding bill.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has been reportedly working behind the scenes to get the Freedom Caucus members to drop their demands. Senate Democrats won’t support the measure, and neither would President Joe Biden — and a chaotic government shutdown would probably not help Republicans with Election Day just a month away.
Trump suggested Republicans should actually increase their unrealistic demands by adding a bill restricting legal immigration.
“If they don’t get these bills, they should close it down, and Republicans should not approve it,” Trump said.
At a press conference over the summer, Johnson essentially admitted there was no evidence that undocumented immigrants vote in significant numbers in federal elections. Instead, he claimed to know it was happening “intuitively.”
“We all know, intuitively, that a lot of illegals are voting in federal elections, but it’s not been something that is easily provable,” Johnson said. “We don’t have that number.”
Trump and Johnson’s false statements about illegal voting have stoked fears among Democrats and even some Republicans that they will undermine confidence in November’s election and prompt another outburst of violence like the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
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