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US Senate leaves town for recess after passing stopgap spending bill, blocking photo ID for voting

Associated Press (AP) via Daily Montanan · back to the audit
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate adjourned for its summer recess early Saturday after approving a stopgap spending bill but declining to advance legislation that would require photo ID for voting.

In a rare overnight session that began on Friday, senators trudged through a slew of measures, confirmed President Donald Trump's nomination of Todd Blanche as attorney general and then departed the nation's capital for the coveted August recess. The chamber is not expected to return to regular session until after Labor Day.

The Senate passed, 86-11, a major effort first proposed by the late GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina that would impose sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin, along with the country's oligarchs and military leaders.

The Senate also passed a bipartisan measure on a 90-6 vote that would keep the federal government funded through Dec. 11.

Earlier in the day, senators had advanced the legislation, known as a continuing resolution, toward a final vote on another strongly bipartisan vote of 91-6.

Senators did not vote on a proposed blueprint that would unlock the complex budget reconciliation process and allow Republicans to move ahead on their third party-line bill.

The Senate failed to advance on a 52-46 vote a bill that would require a photo ID to vote in an election to federal office. Related to the separate SAVE America Act, it was sponsored by Republican Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio. Sixty votes were required to move ahead on the measure, which was opposed by all Democrats voting.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, a proponent of photo ID and the SAVE America Act who at one point had said he would hold up adjournment to obtain action, vowed afterward to continue pushing for it. "This fight's not over. We're just getting started," he said.

Trump is an intense proponent of the SAVE America Act and urged the Senate to stay in town to pass it though Republican leaders have said repeatedly there are not 60 votes to do so. The SAVE America Act would require voters to show proof of citizenship when they register and a photo ID when they vote.

President Donald Trump, who's thrown his support behind the measure, urged the Senate earlier Friday evening to stay in town until the bill passes. "Stop grandstanding, and try getting this done," he wrote in a social media post.