as we approach the end of September us lawmakers find themselves in a frantic race to prevent a government shutdown that could have serious consequences for federal services and millions of workers with the presidential election just weeks away Congress must pass a temporary funding measure called A continuing resolution CR to keep the government operational former president Donald Trump has seized this opportunity to advocate for a controversial measure known as the save act which would require proof of citizenship for voter registration Trump who continues to claim that he was cheated in the 20120 election has urged Republican leaders to include this provision in the funding bill house Speaker Mike Johnson has put forth a proposal for a six-month extension of government funding pushing the deadline to March this extension would allow the next president to have influence over the budget however speaker Johnson's proposal includes the save act which faces significant opposition from the Biden Administration and many Democrats the Biden Administration argues that the save act could unjustly prevent eligible voters from exercising their rights emphasizing that non-citizen voting is already illegal when initially passed by the house nearly 200 house Democrats voted against the save act meanwhile in the Senate Democrats are preparing to remove the voting Provisions from the bill and and are challenging House Republicans to pass a clean CR to avoid a government shutdown with the imminent election many Republicans are concerned that a shutdown could harm their chances of reelection within the Republican party some members including those concerned about military Readiness and fiscal conservatives oppose stop Gap funding measures that do not address spending cuts speaker Johnson faces a critical test as he navigates these political challenges and strives to secure funding before the end of September the coming weeks will be crucial as us lawmakers work tirelessly to reach a solution that avoids a government shutdown while also addressing the contentious issue a voter registration requirements the outcome will not only impact Federal services and millions of workers but will also reverberate throughout the upcoming presidential election