Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), chairman of the Senate Republican Steering Committee, is circulating a strategy among Senate Republicans aimed at avoiding another government shutdown later this year, ahead of a scheduled meeting with President Donald Trump and GOP senators on Wednesday.
Scott, who invited Trump to attend the Senate Republican lunch at the Capitol, outlined his proposal in a letter to colleagues Monday. The Florida Republican argued that Senate Republicans should focus on two primary objectives for the remainder of the year: preventing a government shutdown and advancing election-security legislation, including the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act.
The proposal comes as lawmakers face a Sept. 30 deadline to fund the federal government. Scott warned that Democrats are unlikely to support passage of all 12 annual appropriations bills before the deadline and urged Republicans to unite behind a clean continuing resolution (CR) that would maintain current funding levels through the November midterm elections.
“I hope we can continue to have robust conversations as a conference this week as to how we should spend our time between now and the November elections. President Trump is scheduled to be at our Wednesday lunch. I hope everyone will be vocal as to what they think is the best path forward, but here is mine,” Scott wrote in the letter.
Scott argued that Republicans should make clear they support keeping the government open while placing responsibility for any shutdown on Democrats.
“We need to make it clear to all Americans that Democrats want to shut down government and don’t care how it impacts federal workers or the economy and Republicans want to fund the government,” he wrote.
The effort follows months of funding disputes in Congress and comes after Republicans and Democrats have repeatedly clashed over government spending and immigration-related appropriations. Recent funding battles have fueled concerns among lawmakers that another shutdown fight could emerge before the end of the fiscal year.
In addition to government funding, Scott is urging Republicans to renew efforts to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote. He also suggested advancing portions of the legislation separately, including voter identification requirements.
“We need to make it clear Republicans want election security and Democrats want fraud,” Scott wrote.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has previously stated that Democrats support voter identification requirements, although Senate Democrats voted against a GOP-backed amendment earlier this year that would have established such a requirement.
Scott’s proposal also includes support for legislation designed to lessen the impact of future shutdowns on federal workers and government operations. He specifically highlighted two bills: the Shutdown Fairness Act, sponsored by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), which would ensure pay for essential federal employees during a shutdown, and the Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2025, sponsored by Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), which would establish automatic continuing appropriations to prevent funding lapses.
Lankford’s proposal would also restrict official travel and congressional recesses during a government shutdown.
“We need to make a clear distinction as to who the good guys are and who the bad guys are. We have to demonstrate what Republicans stand for and what Democrats stand for through action, not rhetoric,” Scott wrote.
Scott further asserted that Democrats “have been clear that they want to shut down government on October 1st because they believe that is their path to a majority in November.”
The issue is expected to be a major topic of discussion when Trump joins Senate Republicans at Wednesday’s Capitol lunch, as GOP lawmakers look to chart a strategy for the remainder of the year and avoid another high-profile funding standoff before the midterm elections.
