Officials defend the American vote against an American president.
KENT NISHIMURA/AFP via Getty Images
National security officials are secretly preparing for the possibility that Donald Trump will refuse to accept the results of the midterm elections.
With many polls predicting a big blue wave on Nov. 3, a small group of officials have been laying the groundwork alongside state governments and members of Congress to protect democracy, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
The group includes ten current and former Defense Department officials who identify across the political spectrum, the Post reported, and who fear the 80-year-old president will sacrifice the nation’s integrity to keep his party in power.
The Post reported that the group met with leaders in at least ten states.
“Everyone said we were worried, but we don’t know what to do,” one member of the group told the Post. “The outcome we hope for is that states will be prepared to deal with any contingencies that may arise. »
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A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis told the Post that the administration is “taking decisive action to protect our elections, including prosecuting election crimes, strengthening election infrastructure security, and protecting vulnerable voters from fraud and coercion.”
Trump’s obsession with non-existent voter fraud culminated in the deadly January 6 riots.
During his first term, Trump’s fixation on baseless voter fraud culminated in the deadly Jan. 6 riot outside the Capitol. The riot ultimately resulted in the deaths of five people. Four police officers also subsequently committed suicide.
As the midterm elections approach, concerns have increased in recent days that Trump and his allies could take drastic measures to retain Republican control.
Last month, for example, a conservative former judge warned in a New Republic op-ed that “another January 6” could come on January 3, 2027 — the start of an entirely new House after the midterm elections.
“Today’s Congressional Republicans took a blood oath six years ago not only to put their party before their country, but also to put Donald Trump before their country,” wrote Justice J. Michael Luttig, a George HW Bush appointee. “And so just a few weeks before the midterm elections, Republicans in the House of Representatives have already pledged allegiance to Donald Trump and condemned the United States to another January 6th on January 3rd. »
Tammy Patrick, program manager at the National Association of Election Officials, told the Post that election interference was a top concern for local election officials nationwide, underscoring Trump’s obsession with fraud.
In August, a federal judge blocked the U.S. Postal Service from adopting rules that would allow the Trump administration to decide which voters could cast absentee ballots in November.
And just last month he declared on Truth Social that “Voting in America is CORRUPT!!! »
“All these things,” Patrick told the Post, “are being done out in the open.”
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