Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., told Newsmax on Wednesday that President Donald Trump was "very disappointed" and "very disgruntled" after 14 House Republicans joined Democrats to sink a procedural rule that would have paired the SAVE America Act with the annual defense authorization bill, forcing GOP leaders to send the chamber home early for the July 4 recess.

Meuser told Newsmax's "Wake Up America" that Trump "rolled his eyes" over the defection and predicted the president would spend the holiday working the phones to break the impasse.

The 198-224 rule vote Tuesday, engineered by Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., would have used a special "MIRVing" procedure to attach the SAVE America Act, which requires documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections, to the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act before sending the package to the Senate.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., switched his vote to no as a procedural move to preserve the option of reconsidering.

Thirteen other Republicans, led by Reps. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., and Chip Roy, R-Texas, voted no on the merits, arguing the Senate would strip the voter ID measure out regardless.

Meuser said he believed the measure could still have passed and faulted the holdouts for misreading the strategy.

"I was not terribly surprised, but I was very disappointed that it was 14 [holdouts]. I thought maybe it was just going to be a couple. And I still thought we could get it done," he said.

"Frankly, it was a very shortsighted approach that they've taken. I don't like to say that about my colleagues, but I don't think they understand how we worked the SAVE Act into the NDAA."

He said Johnson "did his best to explain it to them, but they voted no anyway."

Meuser also acknowledged the Senate could strip the language, telling Newsmax, "the Senate can remove it no matter what."

The Pennsylvania Republican called the failed vote a costly setback.

"It's a setback. It wastes time. Time is a precious thing here, with August coming up and all," he said.

He said the president made his frustration clear the night of the vote. "I was actually with him last night, and he was very disappointed, very disgruntled. He rolled his eyes, thinking, what are they doing?" Meuser said. "My guess is the president will probably be on the phone, unfortunately for him today."

Meuser argued the SAVE America Act ranks at the top of the GOP agenda.

"The president knows how important, frankly, it could be the most important thing because the takeover of elections honestly is the main thing that the Democrats are about," he said.

"We need voter ID; we need only the citizens' to register. It's very, very crucial."

The failed rule marks the second straight week the House floor has ground to a halt over the issue.

The chamber is not scheduled to return until July 13.

GET TODAY NEWSMAX+:

NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America with more than 30 million people watching!

Reuters Institute reports NEWSMAX is one of the top news brands in the U.S.

You need to watch NEWSMAX today.

Get it with great shows from Rob Schmitt, Greta Van Susteren, Greg Kelly, Carl Higbie, Rob Finnerty – and many more!

Find the NEWSMAX channel on your cable system – Go Here Now

BEST OFFER:

Sign up for NEWSMAX+ and get NEWSMAX, our streaming channel NEWSMAX2 and our military channel World at War.

Find hundreds of shows, movies and specials.

Even get Jon Voight's special series and President Trump's comedy programs and much more!

Watch NEWSMAX+ on your smartphone or home TV app.

Watch NEWSMAX anytime, anywhere!

Start your FREE trial now: NewsmaxPlus.com