SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
arizona
'The Big Lie Is Back' as Trump's GOP Reboots Felony-Facing Fake Electors
"The election deniers are back at it, laying the groundwork to run the Big Lie playbook once again," warned one swing-state campaigner.
Nov 04, 2024
At least 1 in 5 potential battleground state electors for former U.S. President Donald Trump are linked to the Republican nominee's attempt to subvert the 2020 election, according to an analysis published Monday.
Politico reported that "of the 93 Republicans designated as prospective presidential electors for Trump from the seven battleground states, eight are facing felony charges for signing false Electoral College certificates in 2020."
Five additional possible electors signed similar documents in 2020 but were not criminally charged, according to the reporting, while at least half a dozen others "played notable roles in challenging the results of the 2020 election or promoting election conspiracy theories."
"These people continued to peddle and push not misinformation, which is accidental, but disinformation, which is intentional."
With numerous Trump aides and GOP officials facing criminal charges for their alleged roles in the former president's bogus "Stop the Steal" scheme, experts say it is somewhat less likely that the Republican nominee or his allies would attempt another such plot. However, Trump and his boosters have recycled similar claims of election fraud in what critics say is a bid to spread misinformation and sow doubt about the outcome of Tuesday's contest if the 2020 loser is defeated by Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.
"It does show a lack of regard for the criminal and ethical problems with doing this," Mary McCord, a Georgetown law professor and executive director of the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection, told Politico.
As Politico notes:
Six of the returning fake electors hail from Michigan. John Haggard, Hank Choate, Timothy King, Meshawn Maddock, Amy Facchinello, and Marian Sheridan were among the group of Michiganders who signed a document in 2020 purporting to be official electoral certificates claiming the state’s electoral votes went to Donald Trump, despite Biden winning Michigan by more than 150,000 votes. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, brought felony charges against them, including forgery-related crimes punishable by up to 14 years. Those cases are ongoing and all have pleaded not guilty.
In the battleground state of Wisconsin—where President Joe Biden defeated Trump by less than 21,000 votes, or 0.63%, in 2020—"election deniers are back at it, laying the groundwork to run the Big Lie playbook once again through actions designed to attack the electoral process, sow seeds of chaos set to bloom post-election, and further undermine confidence in our democracy," warned Wisconsin Democracy Campaign executive director Nick Ramos in a Sunday opinion piece in the Cap Times.
"That is exactly what their antics wrought after the 2020 election—chaos resulting in the January 6 insurrection and years of baseless conspiracy theories that did not, and will not, succeed in changing a single election result but did succeed in undermining the confidence of millions of Americans in our democracy," he continued.
"The bullies are back again, continuing their strategy to interfere in Wisconsin's elections," Ramos added.
While some observers claim that would-be election subversives are likely to tread gingerly in light of the potential criminal consequences for alleged Big Lie conspirators, McCord said that "it would appear that the party leadership in the states where there are fraudulent electors serving as electors again are not taking seriously things like the criminal charges that have been brought against these fraudulent electors."
Amy Tarkanian, a former chair of the Nevada Republican Party, told Politico that "these people continued to peddle and push not misinformation, which is accidental, but disinformation, which is intentional."
"It's definitely disappointing," she lamented.
In Arizona—where former state GOP chief Kelli Ward and 11 other Republican officials have been criminally charged in connection with the alleged fake electors scheme—current Republican Party Chair Gina Swoboda has been pushing spurious election fraud claims. This, even as Loraine Pellegrino, a past president of a right-wing women's group who falsely attested that Trump won Arizona in 2020, earlier this year became the first person convicted in the state's fake electors case.
Democracy defenders have sounded the alarm on the potential for violence fueled by baseless claims of election fraud.
The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism said last week that it is "seeing the same warning signs of political violence based on election denialism combined with violent language across fringe platforms that we saw in the weeks before the 2020 election and before the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the Capitol."
According to a YouGov poll published Saturday, just over two-thirds of respondents—including more than 80% of surveyed Democrats and 55% of Republicans— believe it is either "somewhat" or "very likely" that Trump will refuse to concede if he loses to Harris.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Arizona Community Leaders Say Trump Win Would Be 'Worst Possible Outcome' for Palestinians
"Trump must be defeated," Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and progressive leaders in Arizona wrote in an open letter. "The only way to defeat him is to elect Kamala Harris."
Oct 25, 2024
Dozens of community leaders in the battleground state of Arizona—including local Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim organizers—released an open letter late Thursday imploring voters to help defeat Republican nominee Donald Trump in next month's election by casting their ballots for Vice President Kamala Harris, despite the Biden administration's role in Israel's genocidal assault on Gaza.
"We know that many in our communities are resistant to vote for Kamala Harris because of the Biden administration's complicity in the genocide. We understand this sentiment," reads the letter. "Many of us have felt that way ourselves, even until very recently. Some of us have lost many family members in Gaza and Lebanon. We respect those who feel they simply can't vote for a member of the administration that sent the bombs that may have killed their loved ones."
"As we consider the full situation carefully, however, we conclude that voting for Kamala Harris is the best option for the Palestinian cause and all of our communities," the letter continues. "We know that some will strongly disagree. We only ask that you consider our case with an open mind and heart, respecting that we are doing what we believe is right in an awful situation where only flawed choices are available."
"Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir, Smotrich, and the entire far-right in Israel want Trump to win and grant Israel total free reign. We cannot give them what they want."
The community leaders emphasized that their endorsement of Harris is in no way an expression of support for the Biden administration's approach to Israel's war on Gaza, which has entailed a steady flow of weaponry and diplomatic cover on the world stage as Israel faces a genocide case at the United Nations' highest court and some of its leaders face possible arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court.
Rather, they said, it is a pragmatic decision made in light of the dire threat Trump poses to Palestinians, immigrants, democracy, and the planet.
"In our view, it is crystal clear that allowing the fascist Donald Trump to become president again would be the worst possible outcome for the Palestinian people," they wrote. "A Trump win would be an extreme danger to Muslims in our country, all immigrants, and the American pro-Palestine movement. It would be an existential threat to our democracy and our whole planet."
As horrific as Israel's assault on Gaza has been thus far, the letter stresses that "even a genocide can get much worse," pointing to Trump's recent remarks declaring that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "doing a good job" and lamenting that President Joe Biden is "trying to hold [Netanyahu] back" when he "probably should be doing the opposite."
Trump says he's about to speak to Netanyahu and says, "Biden is trying to hold him back ... he probably should be doing the opposite, actually." pic.twitter.com/i12koY0z1s
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 18, 2024
The open letter also cites a report that Miriam Adelson, one of Trump's billionaire donors, wants the former president to allow Israel to fully annex the West Bank in exchange for her financial support.
"Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir, Smotrich, and the entire far-right in Israel want Trump to win and grant Israel total free reign. We cannot give them what they want," the Arizona community leaders wrote. "Trump must be defeated. The only way to defeat him is to elect Kamala Harris."
The presidential race in Arizona is razor-close, according to FiveThirtyEight's polling average, with Trump leading Harris by just under two percentage points. President Joe Biden narrowly defeated Trump in the state in 2020.
Given how close the race is likely to be in Arizona and other critical battlegrounds, the Arizona community leaders warned against voting for third-party candidates in those states as a way to "punish" Harris and other Democrats for their complicity in genocide.
"While voting third party may be strategic in non-swing states as a protest of the current U.S. Israel/Palestine policy or as a step to qualifying the Green Party for public funding in future elections by winning at least 5% of the national vote, doing it in Arizona or other swing states in such a close election could bring disaster," their letter states. "Instead, by helping to elect Kamala Harris, we can say, 'Despite it all, we gave you another chance and helped put you in office to defend democracy and uphold our highest American values. Now uphold them: End the genocide and secure Palestinian self-determination. We will fight every day to hold you to it.'"
"If Harris and Democrats win, we will wage that fight with more allies among the American people, Congress, and the White House than ever before," the community leaders wrote. "If they don't deliver, we will have a mandate and mass support to hold them accountable through every nonviolent tool of democracy, including protests, resignations, civil disobedience, primary election challenges, and even potential mass noncooperation. It's a difficult path, but the one that offers the most hope."
"The first step—and our best choice in this horrible situation—is defeating Trump by electing Harris," they added. "We urge you to join us."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Latinos Are Ready to Vote for Abortion Rights This November
The Latino electorate will prove decisive in securing reproductive freedom and abortion access through ballot measures around the country, particularly in states where Latinos are a significant portion of the electorate.
Oct 01, 2024
In November, abortion rights measures will appear on ballots across ten states, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Nevada, and New York, where Latinos make up a significant portion of the electorate. For decades, pundits and politicians have recycled long-held misconceptions about Latino voters and abortion access, citing our conservative and religious beliefs. Anti-abortion extremists have long fueled these misconceptions through misinformation and disinformation campaigns targeting Latino communities with egregious lies and inflammatory rhetoric about abortion. Yet, polling, focus groups, and direct interactions with Latino communities have debunked these outdated tropes. The Latino electorate will prove decisive in securing reproductive freedom and abortion access through ballot measures around the country, particularly in states where Latinos are a significant portion of the electorate.
For Latinos, the freedom to decide, a pillar of our American democracy, is critical. Meanwhile, Latinos are being hit directly with anti-abortion efforts that take away that freedom such as the six-week abortion ban put into effect by the Florida Supreme Court and the 1864 abortion ban upheld by the Arizona Supreme Court. In the wake of the Dobbs decision, people of color and Latinas have felt the impact of a lack of abortion access, an element of basic healthcare. A 2023 report by the National Partnership for Women and Families estimated that nearly 6.5 million Latinas, or 42% of all Latinas of reproductive age in the country, live in a state that either had or was likely to ban abortion.
Ironically, it will be abortion access and anti-choice efforts to restrict freedom of choice that will mobilize Latino voters this election. In a poll conducted by three national reproductive justice organizations, 87% of Latinas named abortion and women’s rights as one of their top priorities as they head to the polls. Another battleground poll conducted by Somos PAC and BSP Research found that 61% of Latino registered voters expressed a more positive/favorable view of Kamala Harris after hearing that she will protect abortion rights, versus only 19% of Latinos who said they had a more negative view of Harris after hearing that. In key states to secure the White House and both chambers, Latinos make up large chunks of the electorate: Arizona (25%), Colorado (15%), Florida (20%), Nevada (20%), and New York (12%).” In the face of unprecedented attacks on basic healthcare access and targeted attempts by extremists to mislead and divide our community on this issue, this November Latinos will be key deciders on abortion access across the country.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular