Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said Saturday that Senate Republicans should hold a public vote on ending the legislative filibuster to advance the SAVE Act, arguing that failing to act could discourage Republican voters ahead of the midterm elections.
Appearing on Newsmax's "Saturday Report," Johnson said Republicans have been unable to pass the election integrity measure because "Democrats oppose every election integrity measure," adding, "We ought to vote."
Johnson said the Senate has "not even taken a secret internal vote to see exactly where the Republican senators are on the issue" and called for "a public vote on a rule change" requiring the Senate to go on the record.
"My guess is most Republican senators would vote to end the filibuster, even if they don't want to do so, because our supporters, our voters want us to end the filibuster to pass the Save America Act," he said.
"But if we don't take the vote, I just fear we're going to dispirit our own voters. They'll end up throwing up their hands, going, 'What's the difference between the two parties?'"
Johnson acknowledged that many Republicans want to preserve the filibuster when Democrats are in power, calling that "a very legitimate point of view."
However, he argued Democrats "will end the filibuster" if they regain unified control of Washington, saying Republicans should act first "so we can actually pass voter integrity measures."
"I've let the president know he ought to ask [Sen.] John Thune to take a vote on the rule change," Johnson said. "Get people on the record."
Johnson added, "I will vote yes because I think the Senate is broken enough. We've ended the filibuster on all nominations. There's really not much left to filibuster anyway. We just ought to take the vote."
Asked about the Maine Senate race after Democratic candidate Graham Platner dropped out, Johnson said it remained too early to assess the political impact.
"It all depends on who they replace him with," he said, while criticizing Democratic leadership and arguing the party "is not democratic whatsoever."
Johnson also warned about what he described as the growing acceptance of socialism, responding to comments by Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong.
"The rise of socialism is very depressing," he said.
"Now we have 100 years worth of experience" showing "how socialism and communism results in tyranny, the murder of tens of millions of people. It destroys economies. It destroys nations."
Johnson argued that "the radical left has infiltrated successfully almost every institution in this country," including "our education system" and "our news media," and said those institutions are no longer "pointing out how destructive socialism is."
Johnson concluded that socialist policies "destroy initiative, destroy lives, destroy families, destroy nations," adding, "I'm not so sure" that candidates embracing those ideas will be easy to defeat because "our public has not been educated" on "the destructive nature of socialism and communism."
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