President Trump is still refusing to accept the results of the US presidential election. He continues to issue tweets with unfounded allegations about the election results, forcing Twitter to flag many of his tweets as not being fact-based.
In one tweet, he claimed that he will win Arizona – Arizona has now been called for Joe Biden. In another, he claimed that voting machines had “deleted 2.7 million Trump votes nationwide”. And in yet another, the president said, “Rigged election!”
Although there are signs that Republican representatives are starting to soften their stance and may be preparing to accept that Joe Biden is now the President-elect, most Republicans are facilitating Trump’s ravings. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that Republicans who are backing Trump’s untruthful claims are “refusing to accept reality”.
Senator Chuck Schumer said that Republicans backing Trump’s claims were “deliberately casting doubt on our election for no other reason than fear of Donald Trump.”
“Republicans in Congress are spreading conspiracy theories, denying reality and poisoning the well of our democracy,” the Senator said.
Trump’s own officials in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a statement yesterday, refuting all of Trump’s claims. In the statement, issued by the DHS’s Cybersecurity Agency, it said that the 2020 US presidential election was the country’s “most secure ever”. The statement was blunt and to the point. “There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes or was in any way compromised…While we know there are many unfounded claims for misinformation about the process of our elections, we can assure you we have the utmost confidence in the security of our elections, and you should too. When you have questions, turn to elections officials as trusted voices as they administer elections.”
Trump’s just not listening though. Some high-profile Republicans have broken ranks. “I think that we need to consider the former vice president as the President-elect. Joe Biden is the President-elect,” Mike DeWine the Republican Governor of Ohio said. “Look, I’m worried about this virus, I’m not looking at what the merits of the case are. It would appear that Joe Biden is going to be the next president of the United States.”
Even staunch Trump-supporting Republicans like Senator Lindsey Graham are starting to speak out about Trump’s refusal to accept facts and allow the normal transition of power. Graham has told the media that Joe Biden should be given classified briefings the same as Trump. Graham still supports Trump’s refusal to concede, however.
So far, the office charged with facilitating the transition of power, the General Services Administration (GSA) has not handed over the normal resources or contacts to the President-elect.
The Elders, an influential group of global leaders with our former President Mary Robinson at its helm, has issued a stark statement. “It is shocking to have to raise concerns about the US democratic processes as the Elders have previously commented on volatile and undemocratic situations in states such as Kenya, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe,” Mrs Robinson said. The Elders’ statement said that the group felt “deep concern about US President Donald Trump’s refusal to adhere to the protocols and processes governing the transition of power, as putting at risk the functioning of American democracy”.
The dangerous precedent being set by Donald Trump is shaking the very foundations of US democracy at a time when the country is facing an unparalleled health and economic crisis.
