Trump wants GOP to shut down government over racist conspiracy theory

Donald Trump is pressuring House Republicans to connect funding for the federal government with legislation based on a racist conspiracy theory, which would then lead to a federal government shutdown. Trump has said he wants language from the SAVE Act included in the upcoming funding bill, which needs to be passed before a Sept. 30 deadline.

“I would shut down the government in a heartbeat if they don’t get it,” Trump told conservative host Monica Crowley during an appearance on “The Monica Crowley Show” last week. “It should be in the bill. And if it’s not in the bill, you want to close it up. So I’m not there but, you know, I have influence.”

The SAVE Act would mandate proof of citizenship for people registering to vote. The problem is this legislation is based on conservative conspiracies that falsely claim noncitizen voting is rampant.

It is already against the law for noncitizens to vote in federal elections, and it is extremely rare for someone with this status to slip through the cracks and vote. In fact, a study from the Brennan Center for Justice found that there were only 30 incidents of possible noncitizen voting among the 23.5 million votes cast in Arizona, California, and Texas in the 2016 election.