Top Donald Trump aide Paul Manafort on Friday hyped fears that the November general election would be “rigged” against the GOP nominee.
In a Fox News interview, Manafort questioned the integrity of the Justice Department when asked about President Barack Obama shutting down Trump’s speculation about gaming the election as “ridiculous” in a Thursday press conference.
“For someone whose career got jump-started by the Chicago machine, I was surprised to hear him say that,” the strategist said. “Frankly, we think that the situation in the country – just like with the Democratic National Committee’s primaries – is a situation where if you’re relying on the Justice Department to ensure the security of the elections, we have to be worried.”
During the Thursday presser, Obama responded with stunned disbelief when he was asked about Trump’s suggestion that the American election system is “rigged.”
“I don’t even really know where to start on answering this question,” Obama told journalists. “Of course the election will not be rigged! What does that mean?”
The President went on to say the Justice Department would be ready to intervene if there were reports of local governments or poll workers attempting to interfere with citizens’ right to vote.
