Republicans Preparing to Reject US Election Result If Trump Loses, Warn Strategists

THE GUARDIAN: Polling experts point to ‘fake polls’ exaggerating his support, with baseless lawsuits alleging fraud already filed

Republicans are already laying the ground for rejecting the result of next week’s US presidential election in the event Donald Trump loses, with early lawsuits baselessly alleging fraud and partisan polls exaggerating his popularity to make it harder for his supporters to accept that he did not win, veteran strategists say.

The warnings – from Democrats and anti-Trump Republicans – come as Americans prepare to vote on Tuesday in the most consequential presidential contest in generations. Most polls show Trump running neck and neck with Kamala Harris, the vice-president and Democratic nominee, with the two candidates seemingly evenly matched in seven key swing states. » | Robert Tait in Washington | Friday, November 1, 2024

The Guardian View on Investigating 6 January: The Truth about the Storming of the Capitol

Pro-Trump supporters inside the Capitol building in Washington. Photograph: Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
THE GUARDIAN: The attitude of Republican politicians to the committee shows exactly why it is needed

The investigation into the deadly insurrection of 6 January is not one but two processes. The first is an attempt to discover the truth about those events: not only what happened, but who, beyond the members of the mob, was responsible and in what ways. The second is the task of getting people to accept that truth – knowing that many will not.

Senior Republicans initially acknowledged the horror of the events and the culpability of Donald Trump, whose big lie of a stolen election triggered the assault upon the Capitol to stop the peaceful transfer of power. Kevin McCarthy, the House minority leader – who is said to have telephoned the president urging him to call the rioters off as they tried to break through his office window – said that Mr Trump bore responsibility. He and others called for a 9/11-style independent commission. » | Editorial | Friday, July 30, 2021

IRS must turn over Trump tax returns to Congress, DoJ says »

Trump Makes Futile Last Stand to Overturn Results as Georgia Certifies Biden Win

THE GUARDIAN: President met with Michigan’s Republican leaders at White House in desperate bid to subvert democracy

Donald Trump was on Friday making a futile but dangerous last stand, without precedent in modern American history, to overturn the result of the presidential election so he can remain in power.

Even as Joe Biden’s victory in the state of Georgia was confirmed, the president met with Republican leaders from Michigan at the White House in an increasingly desperate bid to subvert democracy after a series of courtroom defeats over allegations of voter fraud.

The Trump campaign’s apparent strategy is to persuade Republican-controlled legislatures in Michigan and other battleground states in the electoral college to set aside the will of the people and declare Trump the winner, despite officials declaring it the most secure election in American history.

“The entire election, frankly, in all the swing states should be overturned and the legislatures should make sure that the electors are selected for Trump,” Sidney Powell, one of Trump’s lawyers, told the Fox Business Network on Thursday. » | David Smith in Washington || Saturday, November 21, 2020

Trump is such a pathetic little man. He’s the orange dictator wannabe! Donnie is the loser. It really is high time for him to concede to the winner: Joe Biden. Theankfully, it will soon be time for him for Trump to go. – Mark

Donald Trump Jr tests positive for coronavirus »

Fmr. MI GOP Exec: I'm "Not Confident That They'll Certify the Election" | The Mehdi Hasan Show

Despite that lack of confidence, fmr. longtime Republican Jeff Timmer says his ex-colleagues in the Michigan GOP "have an obligation to certify the election results. A court will likely tell them to certify the election results."

Schmidt Calls Efforts to Cast Doubt on the Election a ‘Breaking of Faith with American Democracy’

Co-founder of the Lincoln Project Steve Schmidt says Trump not accepting the results of the election is his worst action yet, and says it’s tragic to watch Republicans go along with it. Aired on 11/18/2020.

Trump Acknowledges Biden’s Win, But Quickly Reverses, Saying ‘I Concede NOTHING!’

THE NEW YORK TIMES: WASHINGTON — President Trump appeared to briefly acknowledge for the first time Sunday morning that former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. had defeated him in the presidential election, but quickly reversed himself less than two hours later, insisting that “I concede NOTHING! We have a long way to go.”

The dueling tweets came as Mr. Trump continued to lie about the conduct of the vote-counting process, falsely insisting that Mr. Biden’s victory was the result of a “Rigged” election orchestrated by the “Fake & Silent” media.

His first tweet came Sunday morning at 7:47. Referring to Mr. Biden, the president said that “he won.” That represented the first time Mr. Trump had publicly said what his advisers have been telling him for days privately: His re-election bid failed and Mr. Biden will be inaugurated on Jan. 20.

After a flurry of tweets and news reports about his “concession,” Mr. Trump insisted that he had been misunderstood. » | Michael D. Shear | Sunday, November 15, 2020

See What Pompeo Said When Asked about Biden's Victory

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said there would be a smooth transition to a "second Trump administration" despite President-elect Joe Biden's victory. Brianna Keilar discusses with CNN's Kylie Atwood, Gloria Borger and legal analyst Laura Coates.

Brianna Keilar Sounds Off on GOP Enablers Fueling Trump's Refusal to Concede

CNN's Brianna Keilar calls out enablers of President Donald Trump for fueling the President's refusal to accept defeat in the 2020 election

Merkel Congratulates Joe Biden: International Reactions on the US Election | DW News

While US President Donald Trump refuses to accept the result of the presidential election, many world leaders congratulate President-elect Joe Biden.

In her first extended remarks about the outcome of the US election, Chancellor Angela Merkel has outlined how Germany hopes to move forward with projected presidential winner Joe Biden in the White House. German Chancellor Angela Merkel voiced hope for a return to stronger ties with Washington on Monday, following Joe Biden's projected presidential win. Merkel's speech on Monday marks the chancellor's first extended reaction to the results of the US election after she offered her congratulations to President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris this weekend.

Goodbye Trump, Hello Biden: How America Is Waving Goodbye to a Shocking, Shameful Era

THE GUARDIAN: Trump’s brutal policies and spread of misinformation have divided the US. Uniting the country will be Biden’s biggest task

As the result was finally called, the end of his presidency confirmed, Donald Trump teed off on a crisp, autumnal Saturday afternoon at his private golf club in Virginia.

The president was in the midst of a four-day mission to spread baseless misinformation about election integrity in an attempt to subvert US democracy.

“I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!” he tweeted, falsely, hours before hitting the fairway.

Of the many false claims Trump has made over the past four years – lying about the size of his inauguration crowd, lying about the trajectory of a life-threatening hurricane, lying about the deadliness of the coronavirus – the lies about this election are the most farcical and grotesque.

And they have not worked.

A growing chorus of world leaders, some members of the Republican party, and tens of millions of Americans have already begun to move on. Trump cast a lonely figure as he returned to the White House after golfing, his motorcade met on the street by hundreds of protesters who simultaneously gave him the middle finger. » | Oliver Laughland | Monday, November 9, 2020

Trump's a Loser: What Does His 2020 Loss Mean for America? | The Beat with Ari Melber | MSNBC

Donald Trump lost the 2020 election to a diverse coalition backing Joe Biden -- powered especially by women of color and new voters. On the weekend that Biden was formally projected the winner and President-Elect, MSNBC anchor Ari Melber reports on implications of the election and digs into clues about America’s direction in the results. (This interview is from MSNBC’s “The Beat with Ari Melber, a news show covering politics, law and culture airing nightly at 6pm ET on MSNBC.

Will President-elect Joe Biden Change US Foreign Policy? | Inside Story

After days of uncertainty and a hard fought, bitter campaign, Joe Biden has been declared the winner of the US Presidential election. He says he wants to restore the soul of America and unite a deeply divided nation.

Biden received more votes than any other presidential candidate in history. But he's appealed to the tens of millions of Americans who did not vote for him - to give him a chance.

After his victory in Pennsylvania, Biden is projected to have a majority of the Electoral College votes needed to win the White House.<

How Will the Biden Presidency Impact US Foreign Relations? | US election 2020

Many European leaders are hoping Joe Biden will help repair the transatlantic ties that have been strained under the Trump presidency. So what is a Biden administration likely to do for relations with Europe and the rest of the world?

Biden Addressed Supporters, and the Nation

President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris addressed the nation from Wilmington, Del.

Read the article HERE »

Congratulations!

I would like to congratulate Joe Biden and Kamala Harris on their clear victory in the US presidential election. This is a moment of hope for America: decency and common sense have triumphed. Decency has triumphed over vulgarity, light has triumphed over darkness, wisdom has triumphed over folly, knowledge has triumphed over ignorance, and hope has triumphed over despair.

America is fractured; its society is divided. Much damage has been done in recent years. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have their work cut out to try and undo the damage that Donald Trump and his administration have done to the American economy, to American society.

America has been crying out for change for many years. Now, change has come. In January, the US will have its new beginning. The road ahead will be long, rough and bumpy. I wish the new administration well in the difficult task ahead of them.

© Mark Alexander

Van Jones Fights Back Tears: Result Shows Character Matters

CNN's Van Jones reacts to Joe Biden's election as the 46th president of the United States.

Biden Wins Presidency, Ending Four Tumultuous Years Under Trump

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Joseph R. Biden Jr. achieved victory offering a message of healing and unity. He will return to Washington facing a daunting set of crises.

Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was elected the 46th president of the United States on Saturday, promising to restore political normalcy and a spirit of national unity to confront raging health and economic crises, and making Donald J. Trump a one-term president after four years of tumult in the White House.

Mr. Biden’s victory amounted to a repudiation of Mr. Trump by millions of voters exhausted with his divisive conduct and chaotic administration, and was delivered by an unlikely alliance of women, people of color, old and young voters and a sliver of disaffected Republicans. Mr. Trump is the first incumbent to lose re-election in more than a quarter-century.

The result also provided a history-making moment for Mr. Biden’s running mate, Senator Kamala Harris of California, who will become the first woman to serve as vice president. » | Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns | Saturday, November 7, 2020

Biden Says 'We're Going to Win This Race' as Election Count Puts Him on the Cusp of Victory

Presidential hopeful Joe Biden has said 'we're going to win this race' as crucial states trend in his favour as vote counting in the US election continues. Biden, who stands on the cusp of victory, said late on Friday he was on track to claim 300 electoral votes. The former vice-president has already urged unity during the count after Donald Trump moved to sow doubt about the election process without presenting any evidence. 'We may be opponents, but we're not enemies,' Biden said. 'We're Americans' 'We're going to win this race': Biden addresses the nation as his lead grows

US Presidential Election: Biden on Cusp of Clinching Victory in Narrow Race

We dissect a week like no other with the latest on the US election. And asking how does America hope to become re-United in the wake of the most bitter election of living memory? Trump's legacy may well be the rise of the far right: his policies and personal attitude have been emboldened and branch of politics long thought to be shamed into silence. No more. With Trump's threats of legal action, and his inflammatory, but it seems baseless claims of election fraud, is he trying to take down the system at the same time as the people vote him out?

Donald Trump's Malignant Spell Could Soon Be Broken

THE GUARDIAN: Joe Biden has swept the popular vote, and is on the verge of claiming the electoral college. It’s a momentous achievement

Barring a twist inconceivable even by the standards of 2020, we will soon know the result of the US presidential election – and it will almost certainly be a cause for rejoicing. Donald Trump, the man who has haunted the world’s dreams and sparked a thousand nightmares, has all but lost. On 20 January 2021, he will probably leave the White House – or be removed if necessary. The Trump presidency, a shameful chapter in the history of the republic, will soon be over.

True, it is taking longer than we might have liked. There was to be no swift moment of euphoria and elation, an unambiguous landslide announced on election night with a drumroll and fireworks display. Instead, thanks to a pandemic that meant two in three Democrats voted by slower-to-count mail-in ballots, it’s set to be a win in increments, a verdict delivered in slow motion. Nor was there the hoped-for “blue wave” that might have carried the Democrats to a majority in the US Senate (though there is, just, a way that could yet happen). As a result, it will be hard for Joe Biden to do what so urgently needs to be done, whether that’s tackling the climate crisis, racial injustice, economic inequality, America’s parlous infrastructure or its dysfunctional and vulnerable electoral machinery. And it is glumly true that even if Trump is banished from the Oval Office, Trumpism will live on in the United States. » | Jonathan Freedland | Friday, November 6, 2020