The political furor of the moment is over the SAVE Act, or the “Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act.”
Based on that title, you would think that the bill is about voting.
And it started out that way, with a voter ID requirement for federal elections.
Voter ID is an 80-20 issue. Republicans, who have been championing voter ID for two decades, have won the argument.
So, Republicans should bank the easy win, pass the bill and move on, right? Well, no.
Winning policy arguments, solving problems and preserving those solutions in law is no longer what Congress does. You must fight. So, they threw in requirements that voters prove citizenship when they register to vote.
Now, of course only citizens should be permitted to vote. But voter ID solves 99% of that problem. Regardless, the proof of citizenship requirement gives us more to fight over, even though it loses some votes in both the House and Senate, and it advances the nationalization of elections.
Then President Trump insisted that Republicans eliminate vote by mail, which many states have long implemented, and which almost certainly violates state power over time, place and manner of elections.
But maybe, just maybe, even that bill might still pass.
Then Republicans throw transgender culture war issues into what started as a voter ID bill. Elements that are utterly non-germane to the bill, and that ensure that the bill is impossible to pass.
Now, of course men shouldn’t be allowed to compete in women’s sports. But what does that have to do with elections? Is it worth losing voter ID?
But it gets everyone kung fu fighting online, and it gets people ranting on cable shows.
The final genius move was insisting that the Republic is at stake if the SAVE Act doesn’t pass.
The truth is that the SAVE Act contains elements that would be nice to have, but none of which are critical to the survival of the Republic.
And now the Republican grassroots are furious that Republicans can’t pass the SAVE Act. Do they want men in women’s sports? Do they want illegals voting?
But the votes aren’t there, and the votes won’t be there, because the SAVE Act was designed to not pass. To prolong the fight, not solve the problem.
Our representatives no longer want to solve problems through legislation. They want to prolong problems and prolong frustration, because their brands are built on voter frustration.
The Founders designed a system where our representatives would come to the Capitol, debate and discuss issues, compromise with each other to solve problems, and then go home. That system increasingly looks like a dream.