'I'm A Hell No': Speaker Johnson Faces Intense Backlash From Republicans After Announcing Vote On Continuing Resolution With SAVE Act

On Tuesday, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) revealed that he would be going forward with a vote on the continuing resolution (CR), with the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act attached, on Wednesday after being forced to postpone a vote on the spending package last week following a revolt from several Republican lawmakers concerned about the level of spending being put forward by GOP leadership. President Trump has pushed the SAVE Act on multiple occasions to bring more election integrity to the upcoming presidential election.

"Congress has an immediate obligation to do two things: responsibly fund the federal government, and ensure the security of our elections. Because we owe this to our constituents, we will move forward on Wednesday with a vote on the 6-month CR with the SAVE Act attached," Speaker Johnson wrote on X. "I urge all of my colleagues to do what the overwhelming majority of the people of this county rightfully demand and deserve - prevent non-American citizens from voting in American elections."

While the majority of the Republican caucus backs the continuing resolution with the SAVE Act attached, several prominent lawmakers have taken a stand against Speaker Johnson's efforts to get the spending package through Congress. "Your bill does NOT responsibly fund government. It's 12 bills rolled into one bill that continues the profligate spending that's ruining our country. The fact that you've added a 13th bill to it does not make it a serious solution. Please quit insulting our constituents," Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) wrote. "Like an undead but doomed zombie, the CR+Save Act is back. Speaker Johnson is fake fighting by attaching a bright, shiny object (that he will later abandon) to a bill that continues our path of destructive spending. I won't be any part of this insulting charade. I'm a hell no."

Congressman Cory Mills (R-FL) also expressed his opposition to the CR, explaining that the package would allow for funding levels to remain intact while hurting American defense. "This is not 'responsible funding' when it's at the Pelosi/COVID emergency spending levels. This is approx $2.45T annual spending, $6.3B a day in fiscally irresponsible spending/debt, $3B a day in interest payments, and a burn rate of approx $77K per second on an already $36T deficit. Lastly, it hurts our military and defense capabilities by not allowing new programs of records needed to keep up with adversarial advancement," Rep. Mills wrote. "The SAVE Act passed July 10, 2024, so attaching to the CR only guarantees it's stripped out by Senate, as they stated. Force the SAVE Act to be passed and H.R. 2 Secure The Border Act to be voted upon before sending this DC status quo CR that increases inflation and eliminates our middle class through increased costs of living."

Several other Republican lawmakers have come out against the continuing resolution, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Wesley Hunt (R-TX), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and several others.

You can follow Sterling on X/Twitter here.