President Donald Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) announced a pivotal election integrity bill at a Friday press conference at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. The bill aims to bolster the security of American elections by ensuring that only U.S. citizens can participate in the voting process. It proposes rigorous measures to verify citizenship for voter registration.
“Everywhere we go, one of the first questions people ask about is this issue of election integrity,” Johnson said. Pointing to connections between border security and electoral integrity, he emphasized that the “open border catastrophe” under the Biden administration directly threatens trust in elections.
Trump spoke to his concerns about the current administration’s border policies, which he described as unsustainable and an ongoing source of violent crime. He demanded that Joe Biden “close the border immediately.”
American elections should be decided by American citizens. That’s it. https://t.co/3Lrq6L1NpD
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) April 12, 2024
The proposed bill will require all voters in federal elections to prove their U.S. citizenship and mandate states to purge non-citizens from their voter rolls. “It seems like common sense. We only want U.S. citizens to vote in U.S. elections,” Johnson said.
The move has already sparked criticism from some Democrats, who argue that the proposed measures are unnecessary and could disenfranchise eligible voters. However, Trump and Johnson dismiss these concerns, suggesting that the opposition stems from a desire to exploit the chaotic border situation to manipulate elections.
Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson Announce Election Integrity Bill: 'Common Sense' https://t.co/JHBItAjmWG
— Joseph Earl (@NavyVet_Joe) April 13, 2024
The event also served as a platform for Trump to express his disapproval of the Biden administration’s handling of various national issues, including the reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and foreign aid to Ukraine, both contentious topics among Republicans.
Meanwhile, Johnson cast the tie-breaking vote this week that defeated an amendment to FISA that would have included a requirement that the government obtain a warrant according to the Fourth Amendment before spying on American citizens.
Given Johnson’s unpopular support for warrantless domestic surveillance of law-abiding citizens, the introduction of the election integrity bill is seen by many as a strategic move to consolidate conservative support ahead of the 2024 elections. The GOP would not fare well in the court of public opinion if there is yet another public spectacle over removing a Republican Speaker.
The newly proposed bill is, therefore, likely to be a central feature of GOP campaign tactics, used to contrast with Democratic policies that promote open borders and insecure elections rife with the appearance of fraud and incompetence.
