Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, exhorted his fellow Republicans in the upper chamber to support attaching an election integrity measure to the upcoming funding bill despite the risks of doing so, forcing a government shutdown chief among them.

The day the 2024 NFL season opens Thursday, Lee used a football analogy in a guest column for The Hill to implore Republicans to advance the SAVE Act, a measure passed by the House — with the help of Democrats — and endorsed by presidential nominee Donald Trump, "the coach of the team" known as the Republican party.

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which the House passed in July with five Democrats also voting for it, ensures that only U.S. citizens vote in elections by requiring proof of citizenship. Trump over the summer urged Republicans to "pass the SAVE Act, or go home and cry yourself to sleep."

Trump "has called for a pass on third-and-long with a few minutes left in the fourth quarter," Lee wrote. "The score is nearly even, the whole game is on the line, and we must get the first down to win. This is the kind of play call that determines whether we win or lose.

"Unfortunately, Senate Republican leadership plans to throw the ball away, forcing a punt when Americans desperately need a first down," he added, without mentioning McConnell by name.

At issue is that House Republicans and Senate conservatives, like Lee, want to attach the SAVE Act as a prerequisite to fund the federal government to ensure illegals are not able to vote in November's election. However, outgoing Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and GOP leadership are afraid the move could backfire in more ways than one, Axios reported last month, especially because of the upcoming election.

"Reasonable minds may disagree on the particular play call of adding the SAVE Act to the funding bill," Lee wrote. "But facing such serious threats to our country, Republicans need our Senate leadership to move the ball down the field rather than throw it away for fear of a fumble or an interception.

"Unfortunately, this is not a game. The stakes for our country are higher than ever. If Senate Republicans don't start demanding a new way of doing business from their leadership, they will forfeit their chance to save this country."

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