President Trump
Donald TrumpCotton breaks with conservative colleagues who will oppose Trump’s electoral vote count to give Nunes the Medal of Freedom: reports Hogan says lawmakers “scheme” to overturn election results “mocks our system” MORE on Monday, he tried to stick a tough needle on the eve of the second round of the Georgia elections that will determine control of the U.S. Senate, while encouraging his supporters to vote en masse while incorrectly claiming that the state election in November was fraudulent.
“Our country depends on you. The whole world is watching the people of Georgia, ”said Trump, urging his supporters to appear and defeat the two Democratic candidates with such ease that there is little doubt about the outcome.
Trump’s pressure to get the vote the day before the two runoff runs for the Senate was at odds with his insistence that the November election was “stolen”, and the speech was consumed by his complaints about his own defeat.
“I really want to thank you. Hello, Georgia. By the way, we have not lost Georgia at all. Not at all. It was a rigged election. But we are still fighting for it,” Trump said in his first words stepping up to the pulpit.
The crowd shouted “Fight for Trump” when the president introduced the GOP Sen. Kelly Loeffler
Kelly LoefflerTrump, Biden faces new head-to-head dispute in Georgia Harris: Trump phone call from Georgia shows a ‘voice of despair’ Senate swears by six new lawmakers as 117th Congress meets MORE, who is facing Democrat Rev. Raphael Warnock. Trump called his own presidential race “rigged”, complained that it was “screwed” and repeatedly talked about the presidency as if it were still up for grabs.
The president signaled that he had his eye on Wednesday, when a joint session of Congress will certify the results of the Electoral College and affirm Joe Biden
Joe BidenCotton breaks with conservative colleagues who will oppose Trump’s electoral vote count to give Nunes the Freedom Medal as the next president. But several of Trump’s allies in both chambers have said they will object to certification by certain states.
The feat will not change the outcome, but it will lead to hours of debate. Still, Trump and some of his supporters hope that there will be some final intervention to turn the election in his favor.
“I hope Mike Pence
Michael (Mike) Richard PenceGOP has become part of Gohmert’s overriding cry about street violence after his case is dismissed Court of appeals rejects Gohmert’s electoral process against Pence MORE come to us, I have to tell you, ”said Trump, referring to the vice president’s ceremonial role on Wednesday. “I hope that our great vice president will appear for us. He’s a great guy. Of course, if he doesn’t pass, I won’t like him that much. “
Trump’s speech in Dalton, Georgia, marked his latest attack on the integrity of the presidential election and, in particular, the Georgian authorities.
Trump criticized the Gov. Brian Kemp
Brian KempHarris: Trump Georgia’s call shows a ‘voice of despair’ Durbin: Trump Georgia’s call ‘deserves nothing less than a criminal investigation’ Kinzinger: Republicans can’t object to ‘clear conscience’ after hearing Trump’s tape MORE (R) for refusing to intervene in the state’s presidential results or calling a special legislative session to review the results. The president last week asked Kemp to step down.
Trump also attacked Georgia’s Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, with tensions reaching a boiling point over the weekend when The Washington Post released audio of the president pressuring Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to tip the state in his favor.
The crowd on Monday booed at the mention of Kemp and Raffensperger, and Trump suggested that he would even return to the state next year to campaign against the governor.
Georgia has undergone several audits and manual recounts, with each confirming that Biden won the state by about 12,000 votes.
The state’s voting systems manager on Monday delivered a point-to-point dismantling of Trump’s numerous allegations of fraud in the 2020 presidential election, alongside an easel that offered specific fact checks unmasking several of the most common false allegations about criminals, dead people and underage teenagers voting in large numbers. Trump repeated many of those statements during Monday’s rally.
The president claimed that there were irregularities in Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin that cost him the election, although his legal team has failed to produce any evidence of widespread fraud in any of these states, resulting in several legal defeats, including in the Supreme Court. .
He questioned the legitimacy of Dominion Voting Systems, repeating a widely disproved theory that the company’s machines somehow contributed to the manipulation of votes. The company threatened to sue Trump and his allies for defamation for spreading inaccurate information about the machines.
Trump’s rhetoric has fueled concerns among Republicans that he discourages Georgians from voting in an election that will be won by the party that manages to attract the most voters. In a series of tweets on Friday, he suggested that the second round of the elections was somehow “invalid”.
Trump gathered thousands of supporters in Dalton, a small town in northeastern Georgia, on the eve of the second round of elections that will determine control of the Senate for the next two years. Should one or both Loeffler or David Perdue
David PerdueTrump, Biden faces new direct confrontation in Georgia Harris: Phone call from Trump Georgia shows a ‘voice of despair’ Senate to empower six new lawmakers while 117th Congress meets MORE prevail over Warnock or Jon Ossoff, respectively, Republicans will retain majority control of the upper house. If Warnock and Ossoff win, the chamber will be split 50-50 between the two parties, with the vice-president elected Kamala Harris
The inauguration of Kamala HarrisBiden will include ‘presidential escort’ to the White House, Trump’s virtual parade, Biden faces new direct confrontation in Georgia Harris: Trump’s call Georgia shows a ‘voice of despair’ MORE serving as a tiebreaker.
Biden made his own demonstration in the state on Monday in a nod to the importance of Tuesday’s vote.
Trump is the most popular figure in his party and has a formidable base of supporters. Many Republicans believe that having him in the state on the eve of the second round outweighed the risks.
“I think there is a lot of frustration and anger about November,” said Ralph Reed, whose Georgia-based Faith and Freedom Coalition has knocked thousands of doors on a massive voting campaign in recent weeks. “But I don’t think the energy is negative that will make people stay at home.”
Perdue was unable to attend the Monday night rally in person while in quarantine after exposure to COVID-19. Otherwise, the virus was not mentioned in the demonstration, where participants crowded with few wearing masks.
Perdue and Loeffler pinned their hopes for re-election entirely on loyalty to Trump. The two rarely broke with the president or acknowledged that he will no longer take office this month.
Earlier Monday, Perdue defended Trump’s call to Raffensperger, rather than blaming the secretary of state for leaking the recording.
Loeffler later in the day said he would object to the state’s election results on Wednesday, when Congress certifies the votes. When she announced her plans during Monday’s rally, she was met with applause.
The Republican senators’ unwavering devotion to Trump is a gamble on the president’s popularity in a state he narrowly lost in November, but it also served as Biden’s main line of attack when he met in Atlanta earlier in the day.
“As president, I don’t believe that your United States senators work for me. I believe they work for the people of Georgia, ”Biden told supporters at a drive-in event. “That is why I am not asking your senators to be loyal to me. I believe they should be loyal to you, Georgia and the United States Constitution. And if you vote for Jon and the Reverend – that’s what you get. “