Tag: gop fraudits
Man protests Michigan's election results on the day of the January 6 Capitol insurrection.

‘Vitriolic Threats’ As Michigan GOP Debates Demand For 2020 Election Audit

Reprinted with permission from Alternet

On October 8, 2020, it was obvious how severe political tensions had become in Michigan when the FBI announced that 13 men had been arrested in connection with a domestic terrorist plot to kidnap Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, subject her to a "trial," and execute her if found guilty. Those behind the kidnapping plot were angry over the restrictions she had imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the political climate in that midwestern state hasn't grown any less tense since then. Washington Post reporter Tom Hamburger, in an article published on June 23, describes the tensions that continue to rock Michigan five months into Joe Biden's presidency.

"As Michigan State Rep. Donna Lasinski got out of her car at the state Capitol in Lansing on a sunny morning last week," Hamburger reports, "she was greeted by two people carrying what she described as assault rifles while protesters outside the building called for an audit of the 2020 election. Such disconcerting encounters are not uncommon in Lansing — a reflection of persistent and growing tension gripping Michigan eight months after Joe Biden defeated President Donald Trump."

Michigan was among the five states that Trump won in 2016 but lost in 2020; the others were Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Arizona and Georgia. But Trump and many of his sycophants have continued to make the false and totally debunked claim that Trump really won Michigan and that he was the victim of widespread voter fraud. And with Trump supporters calling for Michigan to have an "audit" of the 2020 election not unlike the Cyber Ninjas farce presently taking place in Maricopa County, Arizona, that only adds to the tensions in the Wolverine State.

"Attacks on the integrity of the 2020 election have persisted in this state, where local county officials are contending with demands by some residents to review ballots for possible fraud," Hamburger explains. "The mounting calls by Trump supporters to revisit the election results are creating a thorny dilemma for the (Michigan) Republican Party, which has sought to fend off those efforts, even as GOP officials seek changes to election law."

Hamburger observes that on June 23, a GOP-controlled committee in the Michigan State Senate "issued a report forcefully rejecting the claims of widespread fraud in the state, saying citizens should be confident in the results and skeptical of 'those who have pushed demonstrably false theories for their own personal gain.'" But last week, according to Hamburger, "A few hundred demonstrators carrying boxes of affidavits signed by thousands of people demanding a state ballot audit showed up at the (Michigan) Capitol."

"On (June 22), a GOP legislator introduced a bill to start the audit process, although it so far does not have support among other lawmakers," Hamburger observes. "The drumbeat for audits has been accompanied by increasingly violent and vitriolic threats against state and local officials. The escalating rhetoric has left legislators from both parties lamenting what happened to the state that was home to moderate political consensus builders such as President Gerald Ford, Gov. George Romney and the late Rep. John Dingell."

Maricopa County, Arizona 2020 General Election ballots.

Most Americans See Sham Behind GOP Election ‘Audits’

Reprinted with permission from Alternet

As Republican lawmakers continue their efforts to conduct audits of the 2020 presidential election, the majority of Americans are raising questions about the integrity of their efforts.

The results of a new Monmouth University poll offer insight into how Americans view the so-called election audits, like the one underway in Maricopa County, Ariz. According to Truthout, poll respondents were asked if they believed election audits were "legitimate efforts to identify potential voting irregularities" or "partisan efforts to undermine valid election results."

Based on the poll results, many Americans see the audits as nothing more than a partisan effort to undermine the outcome of the presidential election.

Per the publication, respondents' results are as follows:

"A majority of Americans, the poll found, felt the audits were partisan-based attempts to question the validity of the outcome of the presidential election, with 57 percent in the poll saying as much. Just one-third of respondents (33 percent) felt that the audits were legitimate actions intended to flesh out supposed voter or election fraud."

"A plurality of respondents (40 percent) also said that these types of audits weaken democracy in the United States, while half that number (20 percent) said that they strengthen it. Thirty-five percent felt the audits had no impact one way or another."

Respondents were also asked whether or not they believe voter fraud is a widespread problem. Only 37 percent of respondents admitted that they believe it is. However, 50 percent of respondents admitted that they believe voter disenfranchisement is a bigger issue. Across several states, Republican lawmakers are working to pass restrictive legislation that could disenfranchise millions of voters.