President Donald Trump has encouraged congressional Republicans to work through the upcoming Easter holiday to pass the controversial SAVE Act voting bill that has held up the passage of a new Homeland Security budget, saying they should push the bill through "for Jesus."
Trump told Republicans during a roundtable in Memphis, Tennessee, on Monday, March 23, that any budget proposal to fund DHS, which has been shut down since Feb. 13 when Senate Democrats and Republicans came to an impasse over immigration enforcement, would also have to include voting provisions.
"Voter ID is part of homeland security and proof of citizenship is part of homeland security, so I think it should be welded in, I think it should be together, you should vote together," he said.
Negotiations stall: With airports in chaos, Trump bats down potential DHS deal over SAVE Act battle
Several proposals to fund the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and address large-scale disruptions at airports have failed to pass, as Democrats continue to press for major reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minnesota in January, and Republicans vote against bills that don't concede to voter ID changes.
