Trump’s lies about voter fraud

NEW from me: I spent 5 months investigating how Trump and Republicans are sowing disinformation and creating panic about supposedly widespread voter fraud. Reporting included 100+ interviews with key players, review of 1000s of pages of records 4 @NYTmag https://t.co/ewJ2HRYvEZ
— jimrutenberg (@jimrutenberg) September 30, 2020

Almost half of Republicans believe mail in voting fraud is a problem

They believe Trump’s lies

A new Pew poll finds that nearly half of Republicans believe fraud in vote-by-mail is a "major problem." That's ominous. It means Trump's efforts to declare uncounted mail ballots a plot against him could find an audience, stoking violence. New piece:https://t.co/TIKC6ceNPf
— . (@GregTSargent) September 16, 2020

Republican lawyer admits there is no widespread voter fraud

Scathing column from GOP super-lawyer Ben Ginsberg on his "painful conclusions" re: Trump and voting rhetoric. The party "must deal with the basic truth that four decades of dedicated investigation have produced only isolated incidents of election fraud."https://t.co/4Cp1UZsob4
— Peter Wallsten (@peterwallsten) September 9, 2020

The most Republican of Republican lawyers just called out Trump's lies on voter fraud https://t.co/LbpfhYzTa8 pic.twitter.com/EquX3AlMx0
— Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) September 9, 2020

Am I the only one that remembers that Ben Ginsberg was a key player in delegitimizing any effort to get a fair count in Florida in 2000? And that he was a particularly vicious partisan during the Clinton administration?
Sorry.
— Charles P. Pierce (@CharlesPPierce) September 9, 2020

Trump’s baseless voter fraud claims

There’s no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the United States, according to numerous investigations and studies.

The president’s own voter fraud investigatory committee disbanded without producing evidence of any systemic issues. https://t.co/MSMys1f31R
— NBC Politics (@NBCPolitics) May 27, 2020

Analysis: A review of Trump’s many unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud https://t.co/8v7gog4ZFx
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) May 27, 2020

Twitter added a fact-check to Trumps unsubstantiated and unfounded claims about voter fraud.

The link brings users to a "Moments" page with a link to a Politico article and a Twitter written summary of the fact check: https://t.co/I8sVVcI9tJ pic.twitter.com/MsKtE5TjTj
— Nick Corasaniti (@NYTnickc) May 26, 2020

When any one says “voter fraud” think “distraction” from real problems require real leadership: “Chris Wallace debunks Trump: No record of massive or serious fraud from mail-in voting” https://t.co/eCj1pcaR8T
— Maya Wiley (@mayawiley) May 22, 2020

A Trump election conspiracy theory fell apart Wednesday when Florida’s law enforcement agency said it had found no widespread voter fraud in the 2018 races for Senate and governor https://t.co/CLdqmaX4Dp
— POLITICO (@politico) May 22, 2020

"absentee ballot fraud is very rare — there were 491 prosecutions related to absentee ballots in all elections nationwide between 2000 and 2012, out of literally billions of ballots cast" @rickhasen always has the receipts https://t.co/3HXXpvU9qB
— Emily Bazelon (@emilybazelon) May 21, 2020

No lie is too brazen for Trump. The only evidence of Democratic “voter fraud” he’s been able to cite is a pants on fire lie https://t.co/VHNbCfjixp pic.twitter.com/mSU7YtSnNh
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 17, 2020

Mine @Slate with @Dahlialithwick: The right-wing network spawned by Federalist Society has gone full Trumpian, morphing from group of principled conservatives into secretly-funded cabal spouting conspiracy theories such as myth of widespread voter fraud https://t.co/yqkpTntK9w
— Rick Hasen (@rickhasen) May 28, 2020

You might remember in 2017, Trump cited being registered in two states as evidence of voter fraud.

We then found out several cabinet and top officials were registered to vote in two states.https://t.co/WUFHvNwyiF
— andrew kaczynski🤔 (@KFILE) May 27, 2020

Trump’s lies about Michigan voting by mail

He’s stirring up nonsense about voter fraud. He wants voter suppression and doesn’t care about the health of voters.

1. Michigan sent out applications, not ballots.
2. Republicans in other states did the same.
3. It’s not illegal. It’s not illegal to send out applications or ballots.
4. The RNC chair said Monday she doesn’t have an issue with sending out applications. https://t.co/HvmYyTuCTG
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) May 20, 2020

I will summarize: Trump lied.https://t.co/nPX4NXjJoE
— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) May 20, 2020

Republicans can wave goodbye to Michigan. Forget it. Up and down the ballot. R's are thugs ready to harm voters who don't help suppress the vote. https://t.co/uarAU9CdYn
— Jennifer Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) May 20, 2020

Hi again. Still wrong. Every Michigan registered voter has a right to vote by mail. I have the authority & responsibility to make sure that they know how to exercise this right – just like my GOP colleagues are doing in GA, IA, NE and WV. Also, again, my name is Jocelyn Benson. https://t.co/deZJwbMlT0
— Jocelyn Benson (@JocelynBenson) May 20, 2020

President Trump lashes out at officials in Michigan and Nevada over their moves to make it easier for more voters to cast their ballots by mail ahead of the November election https://t.co/5Uog4dFeKs pic.twitter.com/W9GpKNAEu1
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) May 20, 2020

This tweet has now been resent to say "applications" were sent to all voters. But it's still not true that this was done illegally. All Michigan voters are, by state law, entitled to vote by mail. Applications are sent out all the time, including before the coronavirus pandemic. https://t.co/cbhKY3pr4L
— Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) May 20, 2020

In real life, President Trump tweeted that Michigan's disaster relief depended on branding his opponent's POTENTIAL VOTERS as criminals. https://t.co/wapZIbJJpO
— David Frum (@davidfrum) May 20, 2020

1. Michigan sending absentee ballot applications not ballots to voters

2. @JocelynBenson one of best Secretaries of State in country & has authorization to do so

3. Threatening to block funding to sway election outcome exactly what Trump impeached for https://t.co/okDRAgc6uV
— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) May 20, 2020

Just wanted to thank Senate Republicans for pre-approving all of the authoritarianism. https://t.co/fZxnNMvf8z
— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) May 20, 2020

Correction: @MichSoS @JocelynBenson is in compliance with all laws. Michigan voters approved no-excuse absentee voting in November. She is the elected official in charge of elections, and she is sending applications, not ballots, to all voters. https://t.co/uXsJBv0nAd
— Barb McQuade (@BarbMcQuade) May 20, 2020

On Trump's corrupt and deranged threat to cut off aid to Michigan:

* During impeachment, Dems raised this exact scenario

* What he's threatening is illegal

* Trump is a clownish autocrat: House Ds tell me Michigan has already gotten its $$$

New piece:https://t.co/gsV4WJytF1
— Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) May 20, 2020

Threatening to defund one of the most important battleground states and one of your party’s few Senate pickup opportunities because 5D chess https://t.co/kXL3GmIwrJ
— Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) May 20, 2020

I assume Senate Republicans, defenders of federalism, will hurry to explain Michigan has the right to run its own elections. And as defenders of the rule of law, they'll remind Trump he doesn't get to hold up funding because he doesn't like something a state is doing. https://t.co/tBK9Zd9Qa2
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) May 20, 2020

In the middle of a pandemic, and during a massive flood in Michigan, @realDonaldTrump wants to cut funding to the state because voters were legally sent applications to vote by mail by a Republican Secretary of State.

Donald Trump is unfit to be President.#WednesdayWisdom https://t.co/y5cmKCwbxi
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) May 20, 2020

In other words, the president has continued to allege illegality even though he has substantially changed the allegation. https://t.co/xTe92gNGqL
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) May 20, 2020

Trump’s allegation of 2016 voter fraud will undermine confidence in 2020 results.

He’s getting his cult ready to consider the 2020 results invalid if he loses. His claims of fraud in New Hampshire and California are baseless lies. Republicans should step up to defend our elections but they won’t. They won’t support legislation to increase election security because they have benefitted from Russian interference.

FEC chairwoman challenges President Trump to provide evidence of voter fraud in New Hampshire https://t.co/cdzlzaGQfw pic.twitter.com/HE1gT5DCnJ
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 16, 2019

The president keeps making up stories about mass voter fraud: pic.twitter.com/BoQ0rV28cr
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) August 16, 2019

SAD: Last night, @realDonaldTrump again made unfounded claims about massive voter fraud in NH in 2016.

In this letter, I ask him to back up his claims in terms a former casino operator should understand: “There comes a time when you need to lay your cards on the table or fold.” pic.twitter.com/vkddT1jGmH
— Ellen L Weintraub (@EllenLWeintraub) August 16, 2019

Debunking the fraud claim

It was debunked back in 2016

Phony claims of busing voters to New Hampshire

NY Times article from 2017

Trump’s dangerous lies about illegal voting.

Trump is lying again by claiming that there is massive illegal voting. He is doing this to undermine public confidence in the 2020 results. I expect him to claim it was rigged if he loses and I doubt he would concede.

The Philip Bump column quotes ridiculous things Trump expects Democrats to say in the 2020 debates. I expect him to use this as a rationale to lie in the debates. He will lie about his own record as well as the Democratic positions and candidate. Trump will claim that Democrats are socialists led by the “squad”.

The column quotes what Trump said:

“Don’t kid yourself,” he said later. “Not as easy when I’m up there on the debate [stage] all alone with some maniac that they” — the Democrats — “chose and that maniac is saying, ‘We’re going to do this for you! We’re going to do that for you! We’re going to give you everything! Everybody gets a free Rolls-Royce, every family!’ ”

“ ‘And we’re going to take better care of illegal immigrants than we take care of our own citizens!’ they tell you,” he said.”

Trump now falsely claiming (again) that illegal immigrants are voting in large numbers. He's repeating a lie that illegal immigrants put on different outfits/hats and vote in large numbers in California. He calls the system "rigged." There is ZERO proof of this.
— Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) July 23, 2019

Today at an event, @realDonaldTrump repeated an unsubstantiated claim that undocumented immigrants vote multiple times. "They vote, it’s like a circle. They come back, they put a new hat on, they come back, they put a new shirt on," he said.https://t.co/hcBWiG23mi pic.twitter.com/eUahr1VgtO
— PolitiFact (@PolitiFact) July 23, 2019

Trump also spoke of some voters voting multiple times, sometimes adding a hat to obscure their identity. This lacks evidence. https://t.co/hcBWiG23mi
— PolitiFact (@PolitiFact) July 23, 2019

President @realDonaldTrump is repeating several falsehoods at #TPUSA, including that California saw "rigged" voting by immigrants in the country illegally. Pants on Fire! https://t.co/x7wzZzSqH7
— PolitiFact (@PolitiFact) July 23, 2019

Texas voter fraud claim was phony

We've turned a corner on vote fraud claims with Texas SOS David Whitley's resignation. This lays down a marker for all election and law enforcement officials who in the future think to hype vote fraud claims before conducting due diligence investigations https://t.co/H43WtFLqjh
— Michael McDonald (@ElectProject) May 27, 2019

1/ NEW: Texas used money from the Help America Vote Act to help pay for its botched voter roll review that jeopardized the voting rights of thousands of legitimate voters. #txlege https://t.co/p9HdSXhkPV pic.twitter.com/fw8nbmppID
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) May 15, 2019

Can't transport more than 2 non-family voters unless you fill out a form identifying them and affirming they "are physically unable to enter the polling place without personal assistance or likelihood of injuring their health."

Seems @SenBryanHughes hates it when Texans vote. https://t.co/Aq4W9CKAhC
— Max Kennerly (@MaxKennerly) May 6, 2019

Texas Sen. Bryan Hughes' new bill, S. Bill 9, will disallow driving of elderly, disabled, or poor people to the polls. It would ban efforts with vans full of elderly from nursing homes, disabled people, poor people who don’t have cars, would be illegal in Texas pic.twitter.com/ikGcEIAs8L
— Grild Cheez (@grild_cheez) May 6, 2019

The oversight committees in the Texas legislature should investigate whether @GregAbbott_TX directed or coordinated with the Texas Secretary of State to illegally purge Texans from the voter rolls. #txlege
— Joaquin Castro (@JoaquinCastrotx) April 26, 2019

Republican officials concocted the bogus claim to justify a mass purge of naturalized citizens from the voter rolls. https://t.co/OZQiPJtZZf
— Slate (@Slate) April 27, 2019

Trump & TX GOP lied that 58,000 non-citizens voted in Texas & now state admits it was all BS https://t.co/CBXaLs8gs5
— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) April 26, 2019

Trump’s evil lie about the 2016 election

So now he’s back to saying there were illegal votes. As always when he makes this claim, he has no proof. This is just a setup for him to cast doubt on the 2020 results. He’ll probably claim there were illegal votes even if he wins. Let’s see if any Republican defends our electoral process. I doubt it. They’ll just continue to put up with the lies and bigotry.

The President of United States is putting "ballot box" in scare quotes and attacking the legitimacy of an election he won. This is dangerous behavior, in every way, and Republicans have decided that they're going to accept it because of judges and tax cuts. https://t.co/3DyfImd272
— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) March 18, 2019

There was no Democratic effort to "steal" the presidential election, at the ballot box or otherwise. This is a big lie. pic.twitter.com/9nn0a5cjje
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) March 17, 2019

Trump has never offered any proof for his false claim that 3 to 5 million votes were illegally cast in 2016 https://t.co/dOOMoXxXh6
— Chris Cillizza (@CillizzaCNN) March 17, 2019

North Carolina House district NC-09 update

In addition to the new election, here are some other developments.

The main guy who committed election fraud has been indicted.
McConnell lied and treated this as voter fraud, not election fraud by Republicans. He did this to blame Democrats which is totally wrong.

Charges were filed in North Carolina in what is expected to grow into one of the most sweeping criminal investigations ever of fraud in a federal election.

By @amyegardner https://t.co/viPkHgBCqC
— Rosalind Helderman (@PostRoz) February 27, 2019

A Republican operative behind an illicit voter-turnout effort in North Carolina was indicted on obstruction of justice charges https://t.co/OZ8fc6Z0Ee
— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 27, 2019

McConnell, with a straight face: "Now that an incident of very real voter fraud has become national news and the Republican candidate seems — seems — to have benefited, these long-standing Democratic talking points have been really quiet." https://t.co/RF2DmtTnrB
— Philip Bump (@pbump) February 26, 2019

Mitch McConnell is easily the most cynical force in American politics, and has been for two decades. https://t.co/EhuhrhkzBj
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) February 26, 2019

Dan McCready’s statement in response to Senator Mitch McConnell’s floor speech about #NC09 @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/9YLaouhlnV
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) February 26, 2019

Republicans are gearing up for an uncertain and potentially crowded primary in the new election for North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District, while Democrat Dan McCready is already coalescing support from his party for the re-vote https://t.co/oqqL9OBlTj
— POLITICO (@politico) February 23, 2019