It is now thought that at least 11 US senators will support objections to the votes of electors from key swing states and that they will be supported by over 100 members of the House of Representatives when the US Congress meets in a joint session on Wednesday. The outcome is still almost certainly going to seal the victory for President-elect Joseph Biden but it may take on a historical significance with widespread election malpractice and fraud allegations in six key battleground states, aired on the floor of the US Congress.
Wednesday will be the day that we will see what will probably be the final act of the US election process as Trump supporters march on Washington and a phalanx of senators and congressmen raise strong concerns in Congress as they vow to object to the certification of the election results in respect of six key swing states that US President Donald Trump claims he won by a landslide and were stolen from him through wholesale manipulation of the election process and fraud. The claims have been rejected by Trump’s political adversaries and many within his own party on Capitol Hill.
Wednesday will be a key news day for many Americans in Thailand as outgoing US President Donald Trump musters his supporters in a last stand and attempt to have the election result in up to six key swing states thrown out by Congress when it meets in joint session to certify the vote of the Electoral College held on December 14th which President-elect Joseph Biden won by 306 votes to 232.
Although many political observers, including those on the President’s side, dismiss the move as having any likelihood of success, it may, all the same, become the greatest challenge to an election result in over 140 years as already 11 US senators led by Texas Senator Ted Cruz, have vowed to raise their voice in objection to votes presented from disputed swing states.
They are expected to be joined by over 100 members of the House of Representatives from the GOP meaning that a 2-hour debate must be allowed for each objection in respect of a state‘s certified list of electors.
This will be followed by a vote, in each case, which must be carried by both the Senate and the House of Representatives for the objection to stand.
Trump is thought highly unlikely to even win a vote in the Senate even though the Republicans have a majority and certainly has no chance of winning a vote in the House which is Democratic Party controlled.
Evidence gathered by the Trump campaign
This, say some GOP sources and Trump supporters, will allow the evidence that the Trump campaign has gathered, to be presented to the floor of congress.
The President’s legal actions have invariably been refuted by the courts since November 3rd including a Supreme Court challenge brought by the Attorney General for Texas which was supported by 126 members of Congress as well as 19 other states.
This case was thrown out by the US Supreme Court on Friday, December 11th due to lack of standing although two Supreme Court justices, Alito and Thomas, voted to hear the case.
Dozens of failed lawsuits taken by Trump in state and federal courts since the election in November
Trump’s detractors have consistently pointed out that in court cases brought, his legal team have failed to bring forward concrete evidence of election fraud. They point to up to fifty failed lawsuits at both state and federal court level.
However, his campaign and supporters have countered this by claiming that no court has allowed the substance of the matter concerning election fraud or malpractice to be heard which they say includes thousands of affidavits, video evidence and a long list of statistical studies and analysis of voting records and patterns supported by field research, which they claim show that the certified win by incoming President Joseph Biden would have been a mathematical impossibility.
Many of the cases thrown out by the lower courts were also decided on a technical basis such as standing and procedural issues.
They point to Trump’s win in nearly all traditional bell-weather states and counties throughout the country as well as the undisputed fact that he received the highest vote for any sitting president in history.
Supreme Court threw out case on December 11th
The election aftermath is starkly dividing America with the case before the Supreme Court in mid-December being opposed by a further 22 states as well as the four states at the centre of the case who are among the 6 disputed swing states, which were named as defendants.
On Wednesday, there are also plans for a large rally of Trump supporters with caravans from many states heading to Washington DC to make their views known.
President Trump continues to encourage US senators and members of Congress to challenge the result
‘An attempt to steal a landslide win. Can’t let it happen!’ tweeted the US President on Saturday which is typical of messages he now posts multiple times per day encouraging US senators and members of Congress to take the fight to the floor of Congress.
The aftermath of the election has also seen a clear split in the Republican Party with Trump vetoing a defence bill put before him on December 23rd.
The President claimed that the bill failed to remove Section 230 legal protections for big tech firms which he had asked to be included in the package.
President’s veto overridden on New Year’s Day
On New Year’s Day, in an unusual sitting, the United States Senate voted to override President Trump’s veto, the first time in his four-year presidency that this has happened by a vote of 87 to 13.
Republican Leader of the Senate, Mitch McConnell, described the bill as one that ‘looks after our brave men and women who volunteer to wear the uniform.’
Similarly, the moves to overturn the election result have met with opposition from more constitutional Republican senators and members of Congress including Senator McConnell.
US Republican Senator from Pennsylvania condemns the moves to overturn the election result
Last week, one those senators, Pat Toomey from Pennsylvania decried the current moves by the president and his supporters to oppose certification of the election result: ‘A fundamental, defining feature of a democratic republic is the right of the people to elect their own leaders,’ Senator Toomey said on social media. ‘The effort by Senators Hawley, Cruz, and others to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in swing states like Pennsylvania directly undermines this right. I voted for President Trump and endorsed him for re-election. But, on Wednesday, I intend to vigorously defend our form of government by opposing this effort to disenfranchise millions of voters in my state and others.’
Large rally in Washington DC
The question now turns to what will happen in Washington DC on Wednesday and the aftermath of whatever takes place which will include a large street demonstration.
In recent days, the Mayor of Washington DC has called on all hotels to close on January 6th while reservations for Trump supporters have been mysteriously cancelled at some well-known establishments.
The other key questions are how the media will cover the event in Washington on January 6th which although the President is unlikely to win, marks a historical occasion given the size of congressional opposition. There will be significant activity but the key question is whether the claims of fraud in the election will be aired or drowned out by other narratives.
Majority of Examiner readers support Trump
A survey of Thai Examiner readers since the election result on November 3rd 2020 shows that 55.5% of our US readers in both Thailand and the United States are avid Trump supporters and believe that the 2020 election was stolen.
In the United States, a Quinnipiac University poll, at the end of the year, showed that 77% of Republican voters believe that the election was stolen by fraudulent means while 97% of Democratic Party voters see it as legitimate.
Just before Christmas, the company at the centre of some of the more outlandish fraud allegations, voting machine company Dominion and its subsidiary Smartmatic threatened leading conservative media outlets with legal action and received on-air retractions shortly after.
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Further reading:
Prime Minister indicates that the cabinet reshuffle will be complete very shortly with no problem
Thailand’s economy has become dependent on government expenditure to stay above water
Thailand and US aim for a new more ‘proactive’ trading relationship as ambassador meets Prayuth
Rice price spike but drought conditions to recede – security concern for the Mekong river
US suspension of Thai preferential trade partner status part of Trump’s ongoing trade war
