A report detailing a heated closed-door meeting among Senate Republicans has ignited fresh debate over the future of the SAVE America Act and the level of support President Donald Trump commands within his own party.
According to multiple sources cited exclusively by the Daily Caller, Senate Majority Leader John Thune acknowledged during a Republican lunch meeting on Wednesday that some GOP senators oppose Trump so strongly that they would never support the legislation regardless of its merits.
The alleged remark came during a discussion about the SAVE America Act, an election integrity bill championed by Trump allies and sponsored in the Senate by Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee.
Several sources familiar with the meeting confirmed to The Daily Caller that tensions escalated as lawmakers debated the bill’s prospects.
One source told the outlet that the reported exchange “totally happened.”
Thune’s office strongly disputed the account.