Trump’s Far-Right Brain Trust Lines Up Arguments for a Violent Post-Election Crackdown

I often find it a clarifying exercise to do the following. In six months we will know the outcome of the 2020 election. We will likely look back to September 2020 and see the eventual outcome as far more known, predictable than it actually appears to us today. This is in the nature of thinking historically. We have lived experience but the people of the future know more than us. My exercise is this: tell the version of me six months in the future how clear or unclear things look right now.

Taking this approach the weight of evidence points to Joe Biden winning a clear if not overwhelming victory over Donald Trump and a good likelihood that Democrats will control both houses of Congress. Looking not emotionally, not with the uncertainty that is so deep-rooted in the Trump Era and not with the weight of all that is at stake, the biggest fact of this election cycle has been the persistence and consistency of Biden’s lead. For all the drama, look at those trend lines. They barely budge.

Looking at all the available evidence, that is the most likely outcome. And I suspect in retrospect it will look even more clear, more likely. After the fact we’ll have only the evidence, the bundle of factual data and not the doubt, uncertainty and the specter of the unknown.

But of course there are other possibilities. The most likely bad outcome is simply that Donald Trump loses the popular vote by three or four percentage points but squeaks out an electoral college win with narrow victories in Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Arizona and lucky breaks in maybe Pennsylvania or other states.

But I want to note another storyline being anticipated and demanded by many of Trump’s most ardent supporters. As usual with people in the Trump world, it surfaces either as ‘jokes’ or things his opponents purportedly want to do or start. In his on-going public meltdown, acting HHS comms chief Michael Caputo predicted that Joe Biden and his followers will try to overthrow the government with violence after not accepting Trump’s victory. Trump will have to put them down by force. He warns Trump’s supporters to stock up on fire arms and ammunition for the coming clash, which the Democrats will force on Trump.

Sanders and Schumer Call For Hearings To Combat Election Conspiracy Theories

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)  and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) are calling for a bipartisan committee focused on election integrity to win back the confidence of Americans in the electoral process, which President Donald Trump has tactically sought to tarnish.

“Despite the clear security of our vote-by-mail system, some have continued to undermine it with unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud,” the senators wrote in a letter addressed to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) tackling the issue.

Earlier this month, McConnell sought to quiet Trump’s efforts to cast doubt over mail-in voting integrity, urging his constituents, “not worry about your vote not counting,” Trump has doubled down in his months-long his attack on mail-in voting.

In recent weeks, the President encouraged illegal double-voting, boosted conspiracy theories suggesting election fraud and even called on supporters at rallies to act as “poll watchers,” and watch over Democrats for “all the thieving and stealing and robbing.”

The hearings proposed in the letter would invite a broad selection of election officials to attest to voting in its myriad forms, by mail, early and in-person.

The letter, obtained by CNN, comes as Democratic and some Republican lawmakers have expressed concerns that Trump will not only continue to sow doubt over the legitimacy of the coming election but also potentially create further chaos by prematurely declaring a victory as an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots are slowly tallied over the days following the election.

“We know a number of states may well be counting ballots for a period of time after Election Day, and that those votes may be determinative in this election,” the senators said in the letter. “To avoid disinformation, conspiracy theories, and suspicion about results, we must understand the likely timeline for this process.”

The pair pressed for more detailed discussion in the Senate about how to proceed in the hours and days following the election and the best way to tackle the nation’s likely volatile mood as mailed ballots are processed.

Sanders and Schumer’s letter cited studies by experts that detail scenarios where the outcome of the election was not immediately known that “resulted in unrest and even violence.”  The duo advised McConnell to launch similar discussions in the Senate to get ahead of potential uncertainties.

“We would like to hear from the most knowledgeable people in the country as to how we can do everything possible to make sure that the election and the period afterward is secure and peaceful,” the senators wrote.

GOP Nominates Another QAnon Sympathizer, This Time For US Senate

Lauren Witzke, a conservative activist who previously tweeted a QAnon slogan, has used some of its hashtags and has been pictured wearing a T-shirt featuring the conspiracy theory, won the GOP Senate primary in Delaware on Tuesday.

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Biden Reminds Trump Who’s Prez When POTUS Blames Him For Not Issuing Mask Mandate Somehow

Democratic president candidate Joe Biden, aka the guy who isn’t president, had a fairly important reminder for President Donald Trump on Tuesday night after the latter bizarrely attacked him during a town hall for not implementing a national mask mandate amid COVID-19.

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DeJoy Brought On Four Staffers At His Ex-Businesses To Work With Him At USPS

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy brought on four staffers at his private businesses to work with him at USPS in June, according to a CNN report on Tuesday. Continue reading “DeJoy Brought On Four Staffers At His Ex-Businesses To Work With Him At USPS” →

Barr Meddles In Presidential Election By Warning Of Socialism Under Biden

Attorney General Bill Barr acknowledged in an interview last week that, as the nation’s top law enforcement official, “I’m not supposed to get into politics.” Then he went and did it anyway.

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Last Minute Change To Alaska Ballot Complicates Race For Independent Candidates

Alaska Democrats are sounding the alarm around a last minute change to the state’s 2020 general election ballot that will no longer differentiate independent candidates, calling the quiet move a biased decision that was tacked on just days before ballots are to be mailed to overseas voters.

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RonJohn Hit Job On Biden Will Be Bad For Biden, According To RonJohn

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI)’s probe into conspiracy theories about Joe Biden will damage Joe Biden, Johnson told a Wisconsin news outlet on Tuesday.

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