‘What good is the filibuster?’ Paxton fumes as SAVE America Act stalls in Senate

WASHINGTON, DC: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is escalating his criticism of Senate rules, arguing that the filibuster could prevent what he considers one of the most important election-related measures in the country from becoming law.

Speaking during a June 6 appearance on 'Saturday in America' on Fox News, Paxton questioned whether preserving the Senate’s 60-vote threshold makes sense if Republicans cannot advance legislation aimed at tightening voting requirements nationwide.

Paxton questions value of filibuster

During the interview, Paxton focused his remarks on the proposed SAVE America Act, which has become a major priority for many Republicans pushing for stricter election safeguards.

While acknowledging why lawmakers in the minority often defend the filibuster, Paxton argued that the legislation is too important to be blocked by Senate procedure.

“Look, I understand why you want the filibuster. You're in the minority, you want to protect against bad legislation,” Paxton said.

But he added that the SAVE America Act “is so important to our country” that allowing it to fail because of a filibuster would be a mistake.

Paxton framed the issue as one of election integrity, claiming that several states have election systems he believes are vulnerable to fraud.

He argued that concerns surrounding voter identification requirements, mail-in voting, and citizenship verification justify extraordinary efforts to move the legislation forward.

“There’s nothing more important to our country than saving the country from fraudulent voting,” Paxton said.

He went even further, questioning the purpose of maintaining the filibuster if it prevents passage of measures Republicans view as essential.

“So what good is the filibuster if we cannot protect our country from fraudulent voting?” Paxton asked. “I don’t see the point of protecting it at this point.”

Paxton calls out 'radical' Talarico

During the same interview, the Texas attorney general also argued that his strategy against Democratic challenger James Talarico is straightforward: highlight positions he believes are outside the political mainstream in Texas.

Paxton has repeatedly described Talarico as holding views that are too radical for Texas voters, pointing to issues including transgender policies, youth gender-transition treatments and energy policy.

“I think once Texans realize his views on all kinds of things,” Paxton said in a recent interview, “his views are radical.”

The attorney general argued that many voters are not yet familiar with Talarico’s past statements and suggested that increased scrutiny during a statewide campaign would become a major factor in the race.