GOP Senators Split: Time to Unite Now

Adriana Stone 0 2 min read

GOP Senators Split: Time to Unite Now

The Senate is staring at a choice. Act or stall. Sen. Mike Lee says the answer is obvious.

Republicans pushed the SAVE Act (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act) to the front of the agenda. It’s about election integrity. It’s a top GOP priority. But leadership dropped a blunt admission this week: the conference isn’t on the same page.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters the Republican conference is “not unified” on using the talking filibuster to force votes on the bill. He warned a talking filibuster would demand near-perfect unity — 50 votes on repeated procedural moves — just to keep the process moving.

“There are a couple of things about that. One is, once we get on—if we were to go down that path—it’s very hard to pivot and get back to opening up the government. I frankly think we ought to.We need to make sure the DHS, TSA, Coast Guard, FEMA—all those agencies—are funded. And so I’m hopeful there will be a breakthrough on that. That’s going to require some, obviously, cooperation from the Democrats, which we haven’t seen a lot of so far. But we want to get to the SAVE Act.
We also, as I mentioned, have got a housing bill that we can pivot back and forth to if we get a deal to open up the government. That’s harder to do once you’re in the throes of a talking filibuster. The talking filibuster issue is one on which there is not certainly a unified Republican conference and there would have to be.
If you go down that path, you’re talking about the need to table what are going to be numerous amendments and an ability to keep 50 Republicans unified pretty much on every single vote. And there isn’t support for doing that at this point.
As I’ve said, and we will, we will get on it, and we will have a vote on the SAVE Act. The context of that, the process in which we consider it, is still an open question, but one that we’re having conversations about. But clearly, there is not a unified position, at least among Republicans in the Senate.”

A reporter pushed on whether the bill might need 60 votes. “Reporter: \u201cBut it sounds like that might be subject to a 60-vote threshold \u2014 is that what you’re saying?\u201d
Thune: \u201cI think that’s obviously a variable possibility.\u201d

Lee didn’t take that sitting down. He called out the quiet block of senators who are effectively stopping the conference from using the talking filibuster. He wants names. He wants arguments. And he doesn’t want silence.

“Not unified on using the talking filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act? It’s time to *get* unified.
We can’t afford the consequences of inaction.
GOP senators who aren’t supportive should identify themselves & make their case—rather than silently stalling.
Share if you agree https://t.co/aLfITRYLRP
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) February 25, 2026”

The strategy Lee is pushing is brutal and simple: talking filibuster. Stand up. Speak. Make obstruction public. Force senators to defend their resistance on the record. No backroom hiding. No anonymous foot-dragging.

Lee has said he already secured 50 senators for a motion to proceed on the House-passed SAVE Act. If true, that should be enough to put the bill on the floor and force votes. The sticking point is whether leadership will risk the procedural scrap while parts of the conference wobble.

That wobble is the story here. Voters who demanded election security expect action. They don’t expect internal paralysis. If senators are blocking the bill, Lee says they should own it and explain why. If not, they should fall in line and move the fight forward.

The bottom line: the SAVE Act fight is a test. It’s a test of unity, courage, and priorities. Senator Lee wants the showdown. He wants the public record. The rest of the conference has a choice — speak up or step aside.

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