By Don C. Reed
What if Republicans controlled the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Presidency — for the next fifty years?
For me, it would be a nightmare, but unfortunately, not a fantasy. It could be made grim reality by a law called the SAFE Act. President Trump has said passing SAVE is his “Number One Priority”. Promising retributions against any Republican who won’t support him on the bill, Trump also promises not to sign any other laws until the SAVE Act is brought to him.
The SAVE Act is loaded with new and stringent requirements, which are little less than voter suppression. For example, a government Issue photo ID (typically a drivers’ license) is required from all voters. Importantly, the name on the ballot must be identical with the one on the birth certificate. If they do not match, the vote won’t count.
Consider.
If a woman takes her husband’s name in marriage, ( as sixty-nine million women have done) then there is no match. The birth certificate name will not be the same as the name on the marriage license. By the letter of the law, her vote will not count. There is a way to fix the problem, but only if she goes to the Elections office and fills out a name change form, or a new marriage certificate. Think how long the line would be, a mere fraction of those sixty-nine million women would make!
Ridiculous? — yes, but it would be the law.
How would this guarantee a Republican victory “for 50 years” as President Trump has promised? (1)
It’s simple. By a substantial margin (seven per cent) women vote for Democrats. (2) If their votes are denied, so are the Democrats’ chances of winning.
But wait, there is more. In Calfornia we geerally vote by mail. It is safe, simple and secure. The ballot comes in the mail, we fill it out and send it back. About 80% of the state takes advantage of this convenience.
Under the “SAVE Act, the laws will change. First, you must go to the Elections Office and register to vote by mail., no matter if you have done it before. Again, imagine the lines, if all those would-be mail-in voters must register in person.
And if that is not enough, every mail-in voter must write the last four letters of his/her social security number on the outside of the envelope — talk about a security risk!
The closer you look, the worse it gets. When you register (again, in person, not by mail or e-mail) bring your documents! You need either a passport (costing roughly $165) or your birth certificate — do you have one of those? Do you know where it is?
Can you register at one of those tables in front of a library? Well, probably not, unless you walk around with your documents in your pockets.
And of course don’t forget your Government Issue Photo ID card! Which groups are most likely not to have that drivers’ license? How about senior citizens, women, voters with a disability, people of color, young voters, lower income individuals, minorities — in other words, Democrats. (3)
Unless you surmount these (and more!) political obstacles, you cannot vote.
Those three words — “you cannot vote” — seem to me the real reason for the grossly mislabeled SAVE Act.
In 36 states (so far), Republicans are pushing bills like the Act, generally with a harmless-sounding label like California’s Voter ID Initiative. (4)
And if such bills pass, and become law?
Just remember those three words.
1. https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/trump-republicans-will-never-lose-save-america-act/
4. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/25/us/politics/california-voter-id-citizenship-ballot.html