Trump involved in proposals to seize voting machines after disputed 2020 election: Report
Then-US President Donald Trump was reportedly involved in proposals to seize voting machines in the aftermath of the disputed 2020 presidential election when Joe Biden was declared the winner.
Trump believes that 2020 presidential was rigged by the US establishment in favor of Biden. He has said that the election was “the greatest Election Hoax in history.”
A clear majority of Republicans and about one-third of overall American voters believe that Biden won the 2020 presidential election by voter fraud.
Citing three unidentified sources, The New York Times reported on Tuesday that Trump ordered his lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, to contact the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in December 2020 to ask if it could legally take possession of voting machines in crucial swing states where Trump claimed he lost due to voter fraud.
Giuliani called Acting Deputy DHS Secretary Ken Cuccinelli to convey Trump’s request. But the official reportedly told Giuliani that he did not have the power to capture the voting machines.
Trump’s team of outside advisers had suggested that he should order the Pentagon to seize the voting machines, but the president declined the suggestion, the Times reported.
Trump also reportedly considered asking the Department of Justice to take possession of voting machines. He raised the prospect during a meeting with then-Attorney General Bill Barr in the Oval Office of the White House, according to the Times.
Politico has also recently reported that Trump had prepared a draft executive order seeking to order the Pentagon chief to take possession of voting machines. According to other reports, advisers to Trump drafted another version of an executive order that would have directed DHS to seize voting machines.
Trump has reiterated his assertion that the 2020 election was tainted by widespread fraud. “The numbers are conclusive, and the fraudulent and irregular votes are massive.”
Trump has been casting doubt on the outcome of his loss by insisting it was the result of fraud.
Trump’s claims have significantly delegitimatized the democratic process in the United States. A recent poll has found that at least 50 percent of Republican voters surveyed believe their vote will not be counted accurately the next time they cast a ballot.
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