Trump's SAVE America Act has lost a key Senate ally after the death of Lindsey Graham
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The high priority of President Donald Trump's integrity has been suspended in the Senate for months, and with the passing of Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., pressure lost a key player in passing the bill.
Graham was not only a vocal supporter of the SAVE America Act; he was the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, a key position in laying the groundwork and guidelines for the party process that Trump wants Republicans to take to pass the bill.
His sudden death on Sunday came as the House prepared to introduce a third attempt to restore the budget to fund the Pentagon and attach a version of the SAVE America Act to the party's work.
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Sen. Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, during a confirmation hearing in Washington, DC, on June 16, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“This is a huge blow to the SAVE America Act, let me tell you,” Trump said after Graham's death.
It's a strategy Graham wants to implement as soon as the political reality of the bill becomes clear in the Senate, where a group of Senate Republicans broke with Trump and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, RS.D., to block the bill with Senate Democrats.
In early April, Graham vowed to make a “down payment” on the SAVE America Act through reconciliation.
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“Voter integrity laws – I'm going to create grant programs, but they're going to have conditions on them,” Graham said. “To get a grant, you have to make sure you remove illegal immigrants. There are a lot of green states that don't do that, and we're going to try to get as many IDs as I can.”
His position on the Senate Appropriations Committee will not remain vacant, however.
Sen. Ron Johnson R-Wis., is expected to take the gavel, but so far he has not been officially named in the role. Even so, he has already stood up to the staff in the committee and his colleagues in the Royal House.
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Ron Johnson, R-Wis., the ranking member, speaks as Adm. Linda Fagan of the US Coast Guard testifies before the Senate Subcommittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on Investigations on Capitol Hill June 11, 2024, in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
“I just walked by Lindsey's desk, so, I mean, I have to take it one step at a time,” Johnson said. “I understand the responsibility I am taking.”
Johnson said he has spoken with his House colleague, House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, and is doing everything he can to “organize the effort so that we can succeed.”
He's already taken a stand on the House SAVE America initiative from House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bryan Steil, but whether the provision lives or dies ultimately depends on Senate rules.
Complicating matters is the clock lawmakers must face, given the time-consuming process of budget reconciliation.
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The House will be in session for two weeks this month, while the Senate will start running for about a month. Both parties will be off for the rest of August, then return in September for an uphill battle to fund the government.
At the moment, the Senate is waiting for what the House produces, and there is no guarantee that their product will pass equally with the Republicans in the upper chamber.
“The road to 51 is going to be rough, I think here,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, RS.D.. “But, we'll see what they say.”
