Trump rejects housing bill over SAVE America Act as legislation set to take effect

President Donald Trump announced Friday that he would not sign a bipartisan housing bill to protest the failure of lawmakers to pass the SAVE America Act. The '21st Century ROAD to Housing Act', passed by Congress last month, is expected to increase housing supply and bring down costs. The bill will become law at midnight despite Trump refusing to sign it, as Congress remains in session and the President's review window ends. 

In a lengthy Truth Social post, President Trump chided Republican lawmakers, calling their inability to break a Senate filibuster "a horrible calamity to happen to our Party." "I will not sign the Housing Bill, which has been fully approved by Congress and sent to the White House, in PROTEST over the fact that the United States Senate is not capable of passing THE SAVE AMERICA ACT, which is polling at 97% with the Republican Party, and very high with the non-politician Dumocrats," the President wrote, adding, "The title of DUMB will revert to the Republicans who allowed this horrible calamity to happen to our Party, and our Nation, itself!"

The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, passed by the Senate on June 22, by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 85-5, was passed by the House the next day with an equally overwhelming majority. The legislation seeks to lower housing costs through several measures that include limiting Wall Street investors from buying up houses, streamlining construction, and removing unnecessary red tape around permits. 

However, after the bill reached the President's desk, Trump refused to sign it, expressing his frustration with Republican senators over the SAVE America Act. The voting rights legislation, which the President and Republicans say will limit election fraud, has faced severe opposition from Democrats who believe it would disenfranchise voters. The Act mandates documented proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections, making the polling process a lot stricter. As per Democrats, many voters do not have the means to produce the required documents.

President Trump has, however, touted the Act as necessary for "national security." In an earlier Truth Social post, "Today's Housing News Conference and Signing is hereby cancelled until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE AMERICA ACT, which I consider to be a National Emergency." On Friday, the President reiterated this writing: "THE SAVE AMERICA ACT’S non-passage is CRAZY, and a serious threat to any politician who votes against it!"

Reacting to Trump's announcement, Democrats questioned the President's priorities. Taking to X, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote, "Republicans would rather make it harder to vote than easier to afford a home. When people show you who they are, believe them." Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo, wrote on X, "The rising cost of mortgages and rent are hitting Americans hard. Yet Trump refuses to act."