Political Participation

SAVE Act

Under the Elections Clause, can Congress require documentary proof of citizenship to register for federal elections — effectively reversing Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council (2013), where the Court read the existing National Voter Registration Act to preempt exactly such a state requirement?

Social Security Fairness Act of 2023

Nothing constitutional blocked this bill for twenty years — procedure did. The Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset reduced Social Security for ~2.8 million public retirees; repeal bills drew 300+ cosponsors every Congress and never got a floor vote until a discharge petition — 218 signatures overriding leadership's agenda control — forced one.

SAVE Act

Identical to its successor H.R. 22 (119th): can Congress use the Elections Clause to require documentary proof of citizenship for federal voter registration? This version answers a different question — what happens to a House-passed bill when the Senate simply never takes it up. It died on the Senate calendar when the 118th Congress adjourned.

Border Act of 2024

None of substance — which is the lesson. Article I gives Congress clear authority over immigration; the Border Act was negotiated by a Republican, a Democrat, and an independent, and it still died 43–50 on a cloture vote that needed 60. The Senate's supermajority rule, not the Constitution, decided U.S. border policy in 2024.

John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2025

After Shelby County v. Holder (2013) struck the Voting Rights Act's coverage formula as exceeding Congress's power over 'equally sovereign' states, can Congress revive federal preclearance with an updated formula based on recent violations — or does any geographic trigger now fail the test Shelby announced?

SAVE America Act

Two layers. Policy: may Congress require documentary proof of citizenship to register AND photo ID to vote in federal elections — the maximal Elections Clause claim. Process: this bill number never left committee; the House passed its text in February 2026 by gutting a Senate-passed veterans bill (S. 1383) and sending the message back — where cloture failed 53–47 in March. The President then refused to sign unrelated legislation, including the ROAD to Housing Act, to force a Senate vote; the ten-day rule enacted the housing bill anyway. One bill, three lessons: shell vehicles, the filibuster, and the limits of signature leverage.

DISCLOSE Act of 2026

Citizens United left one door open on purpose: while independent expenditures cannot be capped, the Court upheld disclosure requirements 8–1 as the constitutional alternative. The DISCLOSE Act — requiring organizations spending over $10,000 in an election cycle to reveal their major donors and banning shell-company laundering of foreign money — walks through that door. The question is whether donor anonymity is corruption's camouflage or association's shield: NAACP v. Alabama (1958) protected member lists from forced disclosure precisely because exposure invited retaliation.