The Alaska senator says the SAVE America Act would force voters to fly hundreds of miles just to register. Turns out that’s not true.
(Chuck Muth) – Sen. Lisa Murkowski is voting against the SAVE America Act, and she wants you to feel sorry for her while she does it.
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Murkowski paints a dramatic picture.
An 18-year-old on a remote Alaskan island has to fly to Nome, book a hotel, and drop over a thousand bucks just to register to vote for the first time.
A fisherman out in the Aleutians has to shell out $1,500 in airfare to make it to Anchorage.
It’s a moving story. It’s also false.
What the Law Actually Says
Murkowski’s whole argument rests on the claim that the SAVE America Act would kill Alaska’s mail and online voter registration systems, leaving remote villagers no choice but to show up in person at one of six election offices statewide.
But that’s not how citizenship verification works under the bill, and it’s not how it works today.
Federal law already requires first-time voters to prove their identity to register, whether they do it in person, by mail, or online.
Alaska residents in bush communities currently register through the mail. Nothing in the SAVE America Act eliminates that option.
Murkowski wants you to picture a teenager buying a plane ticket to Nome just to fill out a form.
That scenario doesn’t exist under current law, and it wouldn’t exist under this bill either.
A Senator Should Know Better
This is the same senator who has made a career out of finding reasons to vote against Republican priorities while still calling herself a Republican.
Tax cuts, judicial nominees, election integrity. There’s always a carve-out, always a “yes, but,” always some sympathetic hardship case dragged out to justify a no vote.
The SAVE America Act does two simple things. It makes sure only American citizens vote in American elections. And it requires people to prove who they are when they cast a ballot.
These aren’t radical ideas. Most Americans, including plenty of Democrats, support voter ID. Most Americans think only citizens should decide American elections.
Murkowski knows this.
So instead of arguing against the actual substance of the bill, she reaches for the most extreme, misleading version of what it might do to the most sympathetic possible voter.
An 85-year-old Native elder. A teenager on a Bering Sea island. It’s a well-worn tactic. Make the bill sound cruel, skip the part where the claims don’t check out.
Elections Should Be Secure, Not Complicated by False Claims
Nobody is asking Alaska to strand its voters on remote islands. Nobody is proposing to shut down mail registration in the bush.
What the SAVE America Act asks for is simple: prove you’re a citizen, show who you are. That’s it.
Murkowski had a chance to fix any legitimate implementation concerns. She says she filed amendments. Fine.
But instead of working toward a bill she could support, she chose to vote no and write an op-ed full of scenarios that don’t match reality.
When politicians dress up opposition to basic election security as compassion for the vulnerable, it’s worth asking what they’re really defending.
In Murkowski’s case, it looks like she’s defending a status quo nobody’s actually threatening, while dodging a vote that would have made American elections more secure.
The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views. Digital technology was used in the research, writing, and production of this article. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.