Here they go again.
Six months before Election Day, and heading into his third consecutive presidential election, Donald Trump and his Republican henchmen are sounding the alarm about virtually non-existent voter fraud. This lays the groundwork for him to claim fraud if he loses to President Biden.
opinion columnist
Jackie Calmes
Jackie Calmes brings a critical eye to the country’s political scene. She has decades of experience covering the White House and Congress.
President Trump refused Recent interview I promise to accept the results in November. His anti-democratic betrayal regarding 2024 is not surprising, as the competitive man has yet to admit defeat in 2020. There will be no similar response from his subservient political party, especially the Republican Party vying for his vice presidential nomination. Their recent attitude of dodging reporters’ questions about whether they will respect the results is disgusting.
and the speaker “Magamic” Johnson (R-Louisiana), then hugging trump On this topic, the Mar-a-Lago congregation is trying to force a bill through the House of Representatives that would require those registering to vote to provide proof of citizenship in addition to a driver’s license or Social Security card. Prevent non-citizens from voting. almost never happens And it’s already a federal crime.
However, it’s not the policy that matters. Politics is.This strategy is two ways to infuriate Republican voters: It taps into their anti-immigrant fervor and The myth of election fraud.
“I know intuitively that many illegal aliens vote in federal elections,” Johnson said. I lied Wednesday at a press conference on the steps of the Capitol. “But that’s not something that’s easy to prove. We don’t have that number.”
Because it doesn’t exist, and certainly not on the scale that Johnson, Trump, and other Republicans claim.We have conducted repeated research, including last year. in arizonaindicating that there are very few instances of non-citizens attempting to vote, and that even that few are largely prevented from actually registering or voting. Cast your ballot.
Here’s how I want to make America great again: By getting Republicans to stop lying. On fraud, we will end unnecessary voting restriction legislation and restore bipartisan agreement that our elections are free, fair, and a model for the world. Was the 2020 election stolen from him, as President Trump still claims?His own Department of Homeland Security Council declared It’s “the safest in American history.”
Until President Trump, no one had to ask candidates whether they would accept the election results. Among President Trump’s shattered norms, his refusal to commit to bedrock principles is perhaps the most corrosive to the foundations of our democracy.
President Trump: “As long as everything is honest, I’m willing to accept the outcome.” Said This month’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, previously another MAGA rally falsely claimed to have won in Wisconsin in 2020. “If we don’t win, we have to fight for our country’s rights.” When asked by a Time magazine reporter if he expected violence after the 2024 election, Trump replied, “If we don’t win, Well, that depends on the situation,” he replied calmly.
In other words, if you win, you accept the result. And, “If you lose, you might get hurt.” As Biden said as recently as Wednesday on CNN, “You can’t love your country only when you’re winning.”
Even when Trump won in 2016 thanks to an electoral majority, he cried fraud.He made up a story believing that Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by about 3 million votes. lie Between 3 million and 5 million illegal immigrants in the country reportedly voted for her.Trump and her House speaker have formed an alliance largely against voting by non-citizens. For him, there is also the added benefit of reinforcing that falsehood.
Election vandalism — And specifically, refusing to commit to supporting the outcome— It makes sense for Trump. But to his friends, this stance is awkward to say the least.
Once-respected South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott was embarrassed last week. avoided On NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” the question of whether to accept the results of the 2024 vote was repeated no fewer than six times. When host Kristen Welker insisted on a simple yes or no answer, Scott gruffly retorted, “This is why so many Americans believe NBC is an extension of the Democratic Party.” (Scott, like many Republican trolls, will childishly avoid using the legitimate name of the opposition party, Democratic Party.)I C party. )
Also among those aspiring to be President Trump’s running mate is North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum. avoided CNN’s “State of the Union” questions. and Representative Elise Stefanik, the Republican leader of the New York House of Representatives. Rejected Ask Congress whether to vote to certify the 2024 results. “We’re going to see if this is a legal and valid election,” she told Welker.
In February, President Trump’s favorite Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, on ABC News’ “This Week,” lashed out at host George Stephanopoulos for questioning him about the Jan. 6 siege at the Capitol, ultimately He admitted he would have done that if he were vice president. He did not subsequently certify Biden’s election victory, as former Vice President Mike Pence did. Florida Rep. Byron Donald told Axios that if he were Trump’s vice president, he would not commit to certifying the 2028 presidential vote if the Democrat wins.
What a disappointing signal to the rest of the world that prominent politicians, and indeed their entire political parties, refuse to acknowledge the proven integrity of US elections.
If Democrats stole the election, how will Republicans explain their victory? Why did Democrats allow Republicans to take the House majority in 2022?
Well, Republicans now seem to have found their answer. That’s because Democrats had not yet allowed enough illegal immigrants into the country to vote illegally.
“I think that’s the intent of why they opened the borders.” Prime Minister Johnson said on CNBC:,to imitate President Trump’s Rally Rhetoric. “It’s about converting them into voters.”
That’s never been the case, and Johnson knows that – I give him a lot of credit. Non-citizens do not vote. US elections are not fraudulent. Voter fraud rarely occurs. Republicans who say otherwise are lying.
And we all intuitively know why.
