The relationship between Senate Majority Leader John Thune and President Donald Trump is under increasing stress, as the two diverge on legislative strategy and tactics.
The SAVE America Act — Trump’s singular focus — is driving a wedge between the two men.
Despite Thune’s adeptness at masking his frustrations, the South Dakota Republican’s deep concerns were evident this week. Thune found himself in direct opposition to Trump in ways that are creating new rifts inside the Senate GOP Conference and threatening to upend the party’s election-year agenda.
It all centers around the SAVE America Act, House-approved legislation requiring ID and proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections. That measure will be on the Senate floor next week, but it won’t pass because GOP leaders lack sufficient support for sustaining a “talking filibuster.”
Thune has communicated that to Trump, but the president is leading a relentless pressure campaign on GOP senators anyway — one that’s being egged on by MAGA influencers and hardline conservatives.
Thune has been the biggest target of that MAGA push, with powerful allies of the president like mega billionaire Elon Musk accusing the majority leader of standing in the way of Trump’s agenda.
“It’s just another normal week, right?” Thune told us Thursday with a laugh when we asked whether his relationship with Trump has become more strained as a result.
Except it wasn’t a normal week.
Thune and Trump have forged a close bond throughout the 119th Congress. The relationship has survived some low points, from ideological differences on tariffs to Trump’s calls for Senate Republicans to scrap institutional traditions such as the filibuster and the “blue slip.”
Here’s more from Thune:
“Some days are better than others. But you realize that in the end, you’re family. And this is a team. And we need the team to succeed. You have differences of opinion along the way. You don’t always get 100% of what you want. But that’s part of the deal.”
Trump made clear throughout the week that he didn’t want to focus on anything but the SAVE America Act, even saying he wouldn’t sign any legislation until the Senate sends the measure to his desk before later backtracking.
Trump seemingly couldn’t care less that the Senate passed a landmark housing bill on Thursday with massive bipartisan support, something Thune has been dubbing a top priority. As we scooped on Wednesday, Speaker Mike Johnson relayed to his leadership team that Trump told him, “no one gives a [bleep] about housing.”
Now, Trump appears to be trying to get more creative in his pressure campaign against Thune — even as the loudest supporters of the “talking filibuster” are admitting that this gambit won’t work.
Thune has been practically begging Trump for months to endorse Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) in his bruising GOP primary against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Trump seemed on track to finally back Cornyn last week. But the president is now holding an endorsement hostage as a way to put even more pressure on Thune. Cornyn has flip-flopped on the filibuster seeking Trump’s backing.
The fallout. GOP senators, even the most intense supporters of the SAVE America Act, are incensed at the president’s posture. They’re also unhappy with those in the MAGA universe calling for Thune to be removed as GOP leader just for stating the reality that the votes aren’t there for a talking filibuster. Many are blaming social media misinformation.
Here’s what Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) told us on Fly Out Day:
“This is a math issue, and there are folks that are just mad at a handful of Republicans, saying, ‘You’re blocking everybody in the wishes of the people.’ I’m like, ‘No, actually, they represent their state and their people, just like everybody else does, just like I do.’”
Thune’s job isn’t in any jeopardy right now, and he’s getting backup from all factions of the conference.
But this is all going to ramp up again next week, when Republicans are expected to hold marathon floor sessions on the SAVE America Act, culminating in an all-but-certain failed vote. Thune’s belief is that a drawn-out floor debate on what Republicans see as a popular issue will help “draw a contrast” with Democrats.
Yet a failed vote is unlikely to satisfy the GOP base. Proponents like Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) are already signaling they’ll forcefully resist efforts by GOP leaders to proceed to a final vote at the end of the process.
“Rather than… proceeding to a cloture vote relatively soon, I think we need to debate it for quite a while before we even think about that,” Lee said.
Midterms impact. Trump and influential MAGA figures insist that the GOP will lose the midterms if the SAVE America Act isn’t passed. That’s leading Republicans to relive their nightmares from the 2020 presidential election and the 2021 Georgia Senate runoffs.
For his part, Thune maintained that the midterms will be about the economy and pocketbook issues — something the majority leader is desperate to focus on, especially after the passage of the housing bill on Thursday.
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) countered that Republicans’ electoral success depends on at least trying to find a path for the SAVE America Act because voters’ beliefs about a stolen election “have already been fomented.”
“At a minimum, we’ve got to show our supporters we’re willing to fight for this,” Johnson told us. “The worst possible outcome is that when Democrats refuse to engage in election security, Republicans get blamed for not being able to pass it. That’d be the worst result.”
