President Donald Trump said he “may be crying” if Democrats retake power, eliminate the filibuster, and admit more states into the union to increase their political power.
On Wednesday, Trump held a rally in Marietta, Georgia, where he reiterated his support for the SAVE Act, which has already passed in the House. The legislation would require proof of citizenship when registering to vote, as well as mandate photo ID when voting. It is currently stalled in the Senate, where the bill lacks the 60 votes necessary to overcome a procedural hurdle called cloture, or more colloquially, the filibuster. Republicans control the upper chamber 53-47.
Trump has repeatedly called on Sen. Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) to ditch the 60-vote rule, but Thune has rejected those calls.
In his remarks in Georgia on Wednesday, Trump told the crowd that if the SAVE Act is not enacted, Democrats will retake power, eliminate the filibuster, and add new states:
A lot of you don’t know about filibusters. They should terminate the filibuster and approve everything because the Democrats are going to do it! The Democrats are gonna terminate the filibuster as soon as they have a chance. And then they’re gonna approve Puerto Rico and D.C. as a state. They got four more senators. They’re gonna end up with 12 more congressmen. They’re gonna get, like, 40 electoral votes.
If they are allowed to do that, by that time, I’ll be sitting home, and I’m not a big crier. I don’t think you want to see me cry, you know? There are some people they do very well when they cry, but you don’t want to see me cry. But I may be crying, I’ll be sitting at home and I’ll say, “I told them.”
Trump then urged members of the crowd to phone Thune.
“They should terminate the filibuster,” he said. “Everybody call John Thune at the Senate. He’s the leader of the Republican Party, and tell him to get this stuff approved.”
Watch above via Fox News.
New: The Mediaite One-Sheet “Newsletter of Newsletters”
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!