Sadiq S BhatWashington, DC — US President Donald Trump has announced that he will not sign a bipartisan housing bill, even as it is set to become law at midnight on Friday without his signature, while he presses Senate Republicans to advance his preferred federal elections legislation.
“I will not sign the Housing Bill, which has been fully approved by Congress and sent to the White House, in PROTEST over the fact that the United States Senate is not capable of passing THE SAVE AMERICA ACT,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
On Friday, Trump renewed his call for Senate Republicans to abolish the filibuster, arguing it is necessary to pass the voting measure and other Republican priorities.
He also warned that Democrats would eliminate the rule if they regain control of the Senate.
The housing bill, which seeks to ease the US housing affordability crisis by boosting housing supply, was formally sent to the White House by House Speaker Mike Johnson late last month.
Under constitutional rules, it will automatically become law after 10 days if the president neither signs nor vetoes it.
‘SAVE America Act’
Either way, the bill will become law, House Speaker Mike Johnson says.
"He won't veto the bill. We already know that. He'll either allow it to just go into law, or he'll put his signature on it and take partial ownership, and I hope he does the latter,” the Speaker added.
Trump had previously said he was undecided about signing the legislation, describing it as “so unimportant” compared with his push for voter identification legislation.
A week earlier, he abruptly cancelled a White House signing ceremony for the bill, saying he would not approve it unless the Senate agreed to take up the “SAVE America Act.”
The housing law passed by Congress is bipartisan, meaning it has support from both major US parties, and it will automatically become law at midnight even without Trump’s approval.
It aims to help address America's serious shortage of affordable homes by making it easier to build more houses across the country.
While announcing his decision on social media, Trump said he is protesting because the Senate has not passed a separate bill he strongly supports, called the SAVE America Act.
SAVE America Act focuses on changing federal election rules in the US.
It includes measures like requiring voter ID and other changes that Trump and many Republicans believe are needed to protect voting.
The Act would tighten rules governing federal elections, including limiting mail-in voting to specific circumstances such as military service, disability, illness, or travel.
Supporters say the legislation is needed to prevent non-citizens from voting and to reduce the risk of election fraud, arguing it is a national priority.
Critics argue it creates unnecessary barriers for eligible voters, especially minorities and low-income groups, and that existing laws already protect election integrity.
While the SAVE America Act has strong backing among Republicans, it is stalled in the Senate due to the filibuster and insufficient votes.
Trump has made passage of the measure a top priority, using other legislation, including the housing bill, as leverage to pressure Congress to act.
Expert opinion
Meanwhile, Sharon Wilson Geno, president of the National Multifamily Housing Council, noted, “Our housing-affordability challenges are the greatest, and significantly much more so at that very low income end of the housing market.”
She added that the federal government plays a strong role there and called for including investors: “We need everybody at the table. Housing costs money. We need housing in the United States. We need investors to invest in housing.”
Emma Waters, a senior policy analyst at the Bipartisan Policy Centre, echoed the sentiment.
“This is something that I think voters have been asking for for a long time. I do think this is hopefully an indicator of forward momentum, and I think there is a recognition that there’s still more to be done on housing.”
Even as experts welcome the bill becoming law, Trump has put his foot down, again urging Republicans to change rules and remove the filibuster in the US Congress.
The thinking is that such a measure would make it easier to pass his election bill and other top priorities before Democrats might regain power in the Midterms, which are less than four months away.
