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By Dan Gooding and Leonardo Feldman
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Senator Tommy Tuberville told Newsweek on Wednesday afternoon that he felt better about passing the SAVE America Act, despite reports of a heated lunch between Republican senators and President Donald Trump.
The lunch, held at the U.S. Capitol, was reported to have seen the president berate Republicans for allowing a vote to block the war in Iran, with one of those who voted against him, Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy, defending his point of view.
The lunch came shortly after Trump said he would not sign a bipartisan housing bill unless Congress approved the SAVE Act, which would introduce measures, including citizenship requirements, when registering to vote.
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In the moments after the event, Tuberville, an Alabama Republican, was asked his thoughts on the legislation's status.
"Well, I can't tell you, but after we left there, I feel a lot better about it than I did before I went in," the senator told Newsweek.
Trump said after the meeting that it had gone well, despite not liking "a few people" in the room.
Senator John Hoeven, who represents North Dakota, told Newsweek that the meeting focused on "a lot about Iran, and the need to stick together and make sure that we finish and achieve our objectives with Iran."
The president has struggled to maintain support within his own party for the war, which began with joint strikes on Iran alongside Israel at the end of February. MAGA voices have expressed concern that Trump has ignored his promises of no more wars during his second term.
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Mounting GOP Divisions Stretch Beyond Iran Vote
Multiple reports said Cassidy and Trump engaged in a heated exchange during the luncheon, largely over Cassidy’s vote Tuesday in favor of the Iran War Powers Resolution.
“I stood and said, ‘You have not told the American people what’s going on,’” Cassidy told reporters after the meeting. “This was supposed to last four weeks, it’s lasted four months. Our original objectives have not been achieved. I am voting for war powers until I get a briefing."
The tense Capitol Hill lunch came amid a broader strain between Trump and congressional Republicans, driven not just by disagreements over Iran policy but also by the president’s aggressive push to force through his signature voting legislation.
Just hours before the meeting, Trump escalated pressure on lawmakers by canceling a planned signing of a major bipartisan housing bill, saying he would not move forward until Congress passes the SAVE America Act.
The housing legislation had cleared Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support, making Trump’s decision a rare instance of the president sidelining a broadly backed policy victory in order to extract concessions from his own party.
The move has frustrated some Republicans, particularly those eager to campaign on cost-of-living issues ahead of November’s midterms, and underscored the degree to which Trump is willing to leverage unrelated legislation to secure passage of the SAVE Act.
Trump's Push to Pass SAVE America Act
It was thought the president would mostly speak about the SAVE America Act at lunch—a bill that has been debated by lawmakers for months and caused frustration at the White House. It would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship from those registering to vote in federal elections and impose stricter photo ID requirements at the ballot box.
Supporters say it would bolster election security, while critics argue it could make voting more difficult for eligible Americans lacking easy access to required documents.
Trump has made the measure a central legislative priority, repeatedly urging Congress to pass it and framing it as essential to election integrity. The bill cleared the House earlier this year but has stalled in the Senate, where it faces unified Democratic opposition and divisions among Republicans over strategy.
For Tuberville's part, he has been a strong supporter of passing the SAVE Act, having also pushed more conservative ideas on immigration, such as ending birthright citizenship. Hoeven has appeared supportive but more pragmatic in his approach to the issue.
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Legal Setbacks Add to Pressure
At the same time, Trump’s push for stricter voting rules has faced mounting legal challenges—another factor raising the stakes for congressional Republicans.
A federal court on Wednesday struck down key provisions of Trump’s executive order aimed at requiring proof of citizenship for voting, with a judge ruling that the president lacked the constitutional authority to unilaterally change federal election procedures.
In an earlier ruling on the same policy drive, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly similarly found that "our Constitution does not allow the President to impose unilateral changes to federal election procedures," emphasizing that such powers rest with Congress and the states.
Those decisions have effectively shifted the battleground for Trump’s election agenda back to Capitol Hill, increasing pressure on Republican lawmakers to deliver legislatively on promises the courts have blocked.
A Dual Test of Party Unity
Taken together, the disputes over Iran and the SAVE America Act underscore a broader challenge for Trump as he seeks to maintain party unity across both domestic and foreign policy fronts.
On one hand, the president is pushing Republicans to rally behind a sweeping overhaul of election laws that faces steep procedural hurdles in the Senate. On the other, he is contending with a growing bloc of GOP lawmakers willing to break ranks over military policy and congressional authority.
The overlap between those fights—both playing out on Capitol Hill within hours—has left some Republicans navigating competing pressures: supporting Trump’s agenda while also asserting independence on issues from war powers to legislative priorities.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Gabe Whisnant and Sam Wilson.
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