President Trump's renewed drive to remove the Senate parliamentarian and advance the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act is putting Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) in a tight spot. Thune, who has had a turbulent history with Trump, now finds himself under fire from the MAGA base for not bending to the president's will.
Thune, not up for reelection until 2028, must navigate Trump's demands while preserving Senate traditions—a balance that won him support in the 2024 GOP leadership race. He recognizes that firing the parliamentarian or weakening the filibuster could backfire when Democrats eventually retake the majority.
On Tuesday, Thune acknowledged he doesn't take Trump's backing for granted as tensions simmer over the stalled SAVE Act. When asked if he feared Trump might withdraw support or criticize his leadership, Thune chuckled and replied, “That could happen.”
The relationship between Trump and Thune has been a roller coaster. In January 2021, Trump urged then-Gov. Kristi Noem to challenge “RINO @SenJohnThune” over disputes about the 2020 election results. More recently, they've cooperated on key agenda items like Cabinet confirmations and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which extended tax cuts and boosted defense and border security spending.
Trump recently punished Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a Thune adviser, by endorsing his primary opponent, state Attorney General Ken Paxton, for not fighting harder for the SAVE Act. Trump fumed on social media that Cornyn was “VERY disloyal” and “didn't fight hard enough.” On Monday, Trump escalated pressure on Thune, declaring on Truth Social that Thune “should immediately fire the Parliamentarian.”
MAGA activists online have called for Thune's ouster, but the campaign has little traction among Senate Republicans. Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) acknowledged widespread impatience over the SAVE Act but warned, “I don’t think firing the parliamentarian is going to solve that problem.” He dismissed online criticism as noise and praised Thune's leadership, noting the difficulty of managing thin majorities.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), a key Trump ally pushing the SAVE Act, has defended Thune's position. He called the odds of replacing Thune mid-session “literally 0 in 100,000,” adding that Thune is “beloved by colleagues.” Thune himself reiterated this week that the SAVE Act lacks the votes to pass, pointing out that four Republicans voted against a procedural motion last week. “The SAVE America Act didn’t even get 50 votes,” he noted.
Thune also stressed that any attempt to bypass the filibuster would fail, as there aren't 60 votes for the measure. He pushed back against Trump's call to fire Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, who ruled the SAVE Act couldn't pass by simple majority. The standoff underscores the broader challenge Trump faces in bending Senate GOP leaders to his will, especially on procedural matters that could reshape the chamber's rules.
