Cornyn says ditch the filibuster, pass the SAVE Act

Senator John Cornyn, who's been forced to dance for the coveted Trump endorsement in the Texas Senate race, has come out with a new op-ed in the New York Post saying that if the Senate has to ditch the filibuster to get the SAVE Act passed, then so be it. This is likely the only way he can keep his seat. 

Cornyn was first elected by the people of Texas to serve them in the Senate in 2002 and now his constituents, along with a majority of Americans (some 83%, with 71% of Democrats), want to see the voter ID requirements in the SAVE Act become law. The only problem is that despite co-sponsoring it, he hasn't been able to get it done. The reason is that there's the assumption that the Democrats will block it with the filibuster, but no one's made them actually block it by standing on the Senate floor and talking the whole time to try to prevent a vote; the threat has been enough.

In his new column, Cornyn says it's time to get rid of it, and that if Republicans don't ditch it and use that opportunity to get the SAVE Act passed, Democrats will do it if and when they take back the House and Senate. If they do that, he says they will pass a radical agenda—something they've threatened to do anyway. Trump said he won't sign any bills until the SAVE Act is passed.

"A rule is only a rule if both sides follow it," Cornyn wrote. "I believe that Democrats, with their votes and statements, have already dealt the filibuster a fatal blow: The Senate rules will change eventually, whether Republicans like it or not. This leaves conservatives with two options. We can either unilaterally disarm, or we can stand and fight.

"We can let the Democrats keep obstructing today and then smash the rules the first chance they get, or we can act now and use the mandate the American people gave this president and this Congress to secure our elections, protect our homeland and bring back common sense. The answer is clear: We need to stand, fight and win. Democrats started this fight. Now Republicans should finish it."

He says that if the Republicans don't this now, the Democrats will do it later. And he's probably right, Democrats in the Senate have been saying that they would use the eradication of the filibuster to get all manner of radical legislation passed. The Senate could push through not only the SAVE Act, but other aspects of the Trump agenda that are not codified into law but merely executive orders that can be reversed as soon as a Democrat takes the White House.

"After careful consideration," he writes, "I support whatever changes to Senate rules that may prove necessary for us to get the SAVE America Act and homeland security funding past the Democrats’ obstruction, through the Senate, and on the president’s desk for his signature.

"This could be a 'talking filibuster' that removes the obstructionists’ free pass and makes them defend their indefensible views on the Senate floor, or it could be a different reform. Process matters, but outcomes matter more: The Democrats’ assault on election integrity and national security must be stopped. Leadership means upholding core principles and applying them thoughtfully as circumstances change."

Trump has said that he'd endorse Cornyn in the tight, run-off race between him and popular Texas AG Ken Paxton, if he can get the SAVE Act passed. Paxton has said he'll drop out of the race if that happens, too. So now it's up to Cornyn, and Senate Republicans, to decide if they can get this done or potentially face the Democrats doing it, for their own purposes, if they retake Congress in November.