Fetterman slams Democrats' 'Jim Crow 2.0' voter ID rhetoric as party unity fractures

Schumer has dubbed the legislation "Jim Crow 2.0," arguing it would suppress voters rather than encourage more secure elections.

"I would never refer to the SAVE Act as like Jim Crow 2.0 or some kind of mass conspiracy," Fetterman told Fox News' Kayleigh McEnany on "Saturday in America."

The bill would require voters to present photo identification before casting ballots, require proof of citizenship in person when registering to vote and mandate states remove non-citizens from voter rolls.

Momentum is building among Republicans. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, became the 50th member of the conference to back the legislation. But Senate Democrats have all but guaranteed its demise in the upper chamber, via the filibuster.

"So it's not like a radical idea," Fetterman said. "It's not something - and there already are many states that show basic IDs. So that's where we are in the Senate."

Even if Fetterman were to support the bill on the floor, it is unlikely to pass without more significant procedural changes.

There are currently not enough votes to overcome the Senate's 60-vote filibuster threshold.

He noted that Senate Democrats once favored scrapping the filibuster but now want to preserve it while in the minority in a Republican-controlled government.

"I campaigned on it, too," Fetterman said. "I mean we were very wrong about that to nuke the filibuster. And we should really humble ourselves and remind people that we wanted to eliminate it - and now we love it."