The Hill :
President Trump early Wednesday declared victory in the presidential race against Democratic nominee Joe Biden even as millions of votes were still being counted across multiple states and the president said he would be going to the Supreme Court in an attempt to stop ballot counting.
Trump asserted that he had won states like Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan despite there still being tens of thousands of ballots still outstanding.
No media outlet has called a winner in those states, no election officials have declared a winner and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden may still overtake Trump on the strength of mail ballots that are still being counted in Michigan and Wisconsin.
“This is a fraud on the American public. This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election,” Trump said in remarks from the East Room of the White House.
“This is a very big moment. This is a major fraud on our nation. We want the law to be used in a proper manner. So we’ll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court. We want all voting to stop. We don’t want them to find any ballots at four o’clock in the morning and add them to the list. It’s a very sad moment,” Trump continued.
Trump contradicted himself at times, arguing votes should still be counted in Arizona, where he is trailing, but not in states where he is leading.
Vice President Pence, speaking shortly after Trump, described them as “on the road to victory,” a notable shift from the president’s own remarks.
The president’s remarks drew rebukes from even some of his allies.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), an informal adviser to the president, called Trump’s remarks a “bad strategic decision” and a “bad political decision.”
Former Sen. Rick Santorum, a Republican ally of Trump’s, said he was “very distressed” by what Trump had said.
“The president is prone as we all know to bluster and fits of pique, being upset about how he’s treated,” Santorum said.
Santorum said it was fine to say he believed he had won, as Biden did earlier, but “the idea of saying, using the word ‘fraud’ ” when people were counting votes was wrong. Santorum said it was not wrong for precincts in Pennsylvania to stop counting votes for the night and resume doing so later on Wednesday.
The president and his team could not appeal their case directly to the Supreme Court, but rather would have to go through lower courts first. Trump had previously indicated he wanted Justice Amy Coney Barrett confirmed to the court in time to decide potential election disputes.
President Trump early Wednesday declared victory in the presidential race against Democratic nominee Joe Biden even as millions of votes were still being counted across multiple states and the president said he would be going to the Supreme Court in an attempt to stop ballot counting.
Trump asserted that he had won states like Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan despite there still being tens of thousands of ballots still outstanding.
No media outlet has called a winner in those states, no election officials have declared a winner and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden may still overtake Trump on the strength of mail ballots that are still being counted in Michigan and Wisconsin.
“This is a fraud on the American public. This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election,” Trump said in remarks from the East Room of the White House.
“This is a very big moment. This is a major fraud on our nation. We want the law to be used in a proper manner. So we’ll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court. We want all voting to stop. We don’t want them to find any ballots at four o’clock in the morning and add them to the list. It’s a very sad moment,” Trump continued.
Trump contradicted himself at times, arguing votes should still be counted in Arizona, where he is trailing, but not in states where he is leading.
Vice President Pence, speaking shortly after Trump, described them as “on the road to victory,” a notable shift from the president’s own remarks.
The president’s remarks drew rebukes from even some of his allies.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), an informal adviser to the president, called Trump’s remarks a “bad strategic decision” and a “bad political decision.”
Former Sen. Rick Santorum, a Republican ally of Trump’s, said he was “very distressed” by what Trump had said.
“The president is prone as we all know to bluster and fits of pique, being upset about how he’s treated,” Santorum said.
Santorum said it was fine to say he believed he had won, as Biden did earlier, but “the idea of saying, using the word ‘fraud’ ” when people were counting votes was wrong. Santorum said it was not wrong for precincts in Pennsylvania to stop counting votes for the night and resume doing so later on Wednesday.
The president and his team could not appeal their case directly to the Supreme Court, but rather would have to go through lower courts first. Trump had previously indicated he wanted Justice Amy Coney Barrett confirmed to the court in time to decide potential election disputes.
