Topline
President Trump on Wednesday refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power if former Vice President Joe Biden wins the election in November, calling for the elimination of mail-in ballots, which he said would ensure the “continuation” of his presidency.
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 23: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the ... [+]
Key Facts
Asked during a press briefing if he will commit to a “peaceful transferal of power” after the election to calm the riots he often decries, Trump said “we’re gonna have to see what happens,” noting that he’s been “complaining very strongly about the ballots,” which he says are a “disaster.”
“The ballots are out of control,” Trump added, telling reporter Brian Karem, “You know it, and you know who knows it better than anyone else? The Democrats know it.”
Trump has been a vocal opponent of states’ efforts to expand mail-in voting in response to coronavirus, often spreading unfounded or outright false claims about widespread fraud from mail-in ballots and even tweeting, “The 2020 Election will be totally rigged if Mail-In Voting is allowed to take place.”
Pressed further on committing to a peaceful transfer of power on Wednesday, Trump called to “get rid of the ballots,” adding “we’ll have a very peaceful- there won’t be a transfer, frankly, we’ll have a continuation.”
Trump also said at an earlier event on Wednesday that his push to get a ninth justice confirmed to the Supreme Court before the election is so the U.S. has a full slate of justices to rule on the “scam the Democrats are pulling” with mail-in ballots.
The comments come after Trump mused about passing an executive order to prevent Biden from becoming president because, in his words, “You can't have this guy as your president.”
The Biden campaign referred Forbes to rapid response director Andrew Bates’ statement in July: "The American people will decide this election. And the United States government is perfectly capable of escorting trespassers out of the White House.”
Key Background
In both the 2016 and 2020 elections, Trump has evoked outrage for refusing to commit to accepting the election results, falsely claiming after the 2016 election that he lost the popular vote because of “the millions of people who voted illegally.” Asked by Fox News host Chris Wallace in July if he would accept the results of the election, Trump said, “I have to see. No, I’m not going to just say yes. I’m not going to say no, and I didn’t last time either.”
Chief Critic
“Encouraging supporters to vote twice. Claiming legal mail-in-voting is ‘rigged.’ Suing to stop ballots from being counted. Admitting he wants the Supreme Court to give him an unfair advantage. Now this,” tweeted Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.). “Trump doesn’t want a fair election, he wants to keep power at any cost.”
Big Number
7%. That’s the size of Biden’s lead over Trump nationally in the RealClearPolitics average of polls, meaning the question of whether Trump adheres to a peaceful transfer of power may be a pertinent one.
