The SAVE Act is ostensibly intended to fix problems of voter fraud and maintain election integrity in the United States. The trouble is that there’s “no evidence” of widespread issues, “Meet the Press” host Ryan Nobles told Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) on Sunday — and Marshall failed to counter with any proof of his own.
After Marshall attempted to reroute a conversation about the war with Iran and the financial strain many Americans live under to voter fraud, Nobles fired back, “OK, well, let’s talk about that. And let’s talk about the realistic possibility of getting the SAVE America Act passed.”
“Even though President Trump has refused to sign any legislation until it is, the SAVE Act calls for several changes to existing voting requirements,” he continued. Nobles then played a clip of Sen. Thom Tillis, who asked, “Does any rational person who’s ever had any experience with implementing election law really think that it’s possible to have all that in place in time for this election and not be disrupted?”
Nobles put the question to Marshall: “Sen. Tillis says there’s not enough time or money to even get this place by November. Is he right?”
Marshall attempted to steer the conversation with his answer.
“Look, I think that there is a huge concern on the part of Americans right now that our elections are not trustworthy,” he said. “I don’t think that fraud will ever end our democracy. What I’m worried about is those that have this belief, this fear that fraud is indeed possible and that it could go unpunished.”
Watch the full interview below:
Nobles zeroed in on Marshall’s claim. “But let’s talk about the root of that feeling that Americans have, at least a certain sect of Americans, as it relates to the integrity of elections. You’ve said if you could pass one bill the rest of your career, it would be the SAVE America Act,” he said. “Every issue we care about starts with secure elections. Federal law already prohibits non-citizens from voting. There’s no evidence that fraudulent votes have changed any election outcomes. Are you trying to solve a problem that doesn’t exist?”
A flustered Marshall answered, “Look, we make pilots before they start flying a plane. We make them get a license to do that. We don’t wait till they crash a plane until we make them go through a process. The issue right now is again that Americans don’t feel that the elections are trustworthy.”
The Heritage Foundation — an openly conservative, right-wing think tank — evaluated elections going back to the 1980s and found voter fraud is “vanishingly rare” and “less common than being struck by lightning,” per the Brennan Center for Justice.
