MAGA Rages at Republicans and John Thune for Failing to Pass SAVE Act and Going to Recess Instead

Zachary LeemanAug 8th, 2026, 2:40 pm
 
Senate Majority Leader John Thune

AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is facing backlash from conservatives and MAGA supporters after the Senate went into its August recess, kicking any potential action on the SAVE America Act to September.

The Senate voted in the wee hours of Saturday to confirm Todd Blanche as U.S. Attorney General, but many on the right were irate that the body went into recess without passing the SAVE Act, which President Donald Trump has been urging Thune and Republicans to do.

The SAVE Act is a voter ID bill that would place new restrictions on mail-in voting and require proof of citizenship to vote.

All Senate Democrats voted against a stripped down version of the SAVE Act during the legislative spree going into Saturday.

Republican senators spoke to the president and Thune about passing pieces of the SAVE Act as part of a larger budget package when they return to session in September.

“Obviously, with the president at his direction, this is what he wants to do,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) said after a phone call with the president.

Johnson and Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Rick Scott (R-FL) had called on the Senate to cancel the August recess.

“I proudly voted against leaving town. And I will continue pushing for the SAVE America Act when the Senate is back in session,” Lee wrote on X, noting there are just 21 weeks left in the year and lawmakers will be in recess for 14 of them.

“I’ve been on the floor all night, and I have stood by [Mike Lee] to force a vote to keep the Senate in session. I voted NO on adjourning, and am submitting my opposition to the record,” Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL) wrote on X where she declared, “Washington is broken.”

Sen. Todd Young (R-IN) posted to X that he was “disappointed” in the Senate going to recess without passing the SAVE Act and more.

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) ripped his colleagues  Saturday during a Fox News appearance.

“Senator Mike Lee is 100% correct. This is why he has supported major changes to the Senate filibuster, essentially requiring US senators to hold the floor if they want to filibuster legislation!” he said.

Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) went further in his criticism while appearing on Fox.

“The American people are paying them to do a job. They’re not doing it,” he said.

Lawmakers like Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) placed the blame on Democrats, but MAGA faithful have rejected excuses and laid blame at the feet of Thune.

Some called for South Dakota citizens to make Thune’s life as “miserable as possible” and others branded him a failure.

Trump has publicly pushed Thune to pass the SAVE Act as the Senate leader has warned the votes are not in place to do so. In an interview with Punchbowl News this week, Trump declined to say whether he’d support Thune for another term as Senate leader.

“John’s trying. He’s trying hard. I really believe that. But if he doesn’t get there, it would be unfortunate,” he said.

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Zachary Leeman

Zachary Leeman covered pop culture and politics at outlets such as Breitbart, LifeZette, BizPac Review, HollywoodinToto, and others. He is the author of the novel Nigh. He joined Mediaite in 2022.