President Donald Trump met with Speaker Mike Johnson as Republicans sought a path forward on voter ID legislation and a bipartisan housing package amid a House floor impasse.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
President Donald Trump met with House Speaker Mike Johnson at the White House on Thursday as Republican leaders worked to break a legislative standoff over election legislation that has stalled House business and delayed action on a bipartisan housing bill.
The White House meeting came one day after Trump canceled a planned signing ceremony for the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, according to NBC News. The president said Senate Republicans should first focus on passing the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, known as the SAVE America Act, which would require voters to provide proof of U.S. citizenship and additional identification to take part in federal elections.
Trump’s decision left Republican leaders trying to move several priorities at once while navigating a narrow House majority and disagreements inside the party over how to advance the election measure.
As he left the Capitol for the White House, Johnson said Republicans were working through the difficulty of legislating with limited room for defections.
“We’re in an era with small margins and small majorities, and we’ve got to get things moving,” Johnson told reporters.
The House floor dispute followed an effort led by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., to block legislation from moving forward until Congress passes the SAVE America Act. The House has already passed one version of the bill, but it remains stalled in the Senate, where Republicans have said they do not currently have enough votes to clear the chamber’s 60-vote legislative threshold.
Johnson told reporters Thursday that Republicans may look for another route by attempting to include election-related language in a budget reconciliation package. Reconciliation can allow certain legislation to pass the Senate with a simple majority, but some Republican supporters have questioned whether the voting provisions would be permitted under Senate rules governing that process.
Johnson defended Trump’s decision to hold off on signing the housing bill, saying delays are part of the legislative process.
“This is how the process plays out. Sometimes it’s slow, it’s a grind,” Johnson said.
“It’s a deliberative legislative body. That’s what happens. So keep the faith, we’re going to get it all done,” he added.
“The president, I believe, is going to sign that bill,” Johnson said.
Johnson said Trump delayed signing the housing measure and that he planned to discuss the issue with the president. He said they would work through the matter as they “always do.”
Trump delivered a similar message Wednesday during a closed-door meeting with Senate Republicans, according to Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan.
“The president had one, one clear message: SAVE America Act, SAVE America Act, SAVE America Act. That election integrity is so important to the, to this republic that we need to pass that bill, and everything else pales in comparison to that,” Marshall said.
“What he said is that the SAVE America Act is exponentially more important than the housing bill,” Marshall added.
The delayed housing legislation had passed Congress with broad bipartisan support. Democrats and some housing advocates criticized Trump’s decision to postpone signing it, saying the measure was designed to address housing affordability by encouraging more home construction, reducing regulatory barriers and expanding housing opportunities.
Republican leaders have said Trump still intends to sign the housing bill after lawmakers resolve the current dispute.
The White House has not publicly outlined what specific actions may follow Thursday’s meeting between Trump and Johnson.
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