Trump and his “Rigged Election” Nonsense

As readers of this column know, I expect Donald Trump to win the election on Tuesday, fair and square. The polls indicate a Trump advantage in the election. I’m not pleased about that, but that’s what I expect and am prepared to accept in a fair and free election, as the forthcoming election is certain to be.

While Kamala Harris is gaining election momentum, I believe it may be too little, too late. The polls are essentially tied in Pennsylvania, and whoever wins Pennsylvania will probably win the election. It will be close, and Trump will never concede a close election if he loses. With the surge in female registration during the last few weeks presumably accruing to Harris’s benefit, perhaps she will emerge the winner on Tuesday. We’ll know soon enough.

What is troubling but unsurprising is Trump’s intention to claim election fraud if Harris’s current momentum carries her to victory Tuesday. Trump's claim that he has the votes to win even though no votes have been counted yet is simply a symptom, or perhaps a warning, of Trump’s inability to accept defeat, assuming he loses Tuesday’s election. Ominously, Trump’s “I have the votes to win” rhetoric suggests he intends to claim victory next week and throw the Country into turmoil if he loses in a close contest. Whether that is strategy or pathology is anyone’s guess.

Lindsay Daniels of the nonpartisan Democracy Fund, which is all about strengthening democracy in America, has warned that there are indications (stage-setting, as he describes it) that election mischief is underway. “The Trump-promoted threats (to claim a rigged election) have only increased,” he says.

Trump, offering no evidence whatsoever, still insists he won the 2020 election and that election fraud stole that victory from him. Trump’s message to his supporters is that if he wins the election on Tuesday, it will be a fair contest, and if he loses, significant fraud will have been committed. Already a majority of Trump supporters in key states like Michigan, Arizona and Pennsylvania are voicing doubt that the election will be fair in their states. Friday, Trump declared, “If I lose - I’ll tell you what, it’s possible because they cheat. That’s the only way we’re gonna lose because they cheat.”

There has, however, been little to no indication of election irregularities. Trump, however, needs an excuse in the event of an election loss because, in Trump’s mind, he never loses. Only fraud can hand him a loss.

This disparaging of America’s generally superb election integrity history is dangerous. Trump has recklessly and deliberately created an election tinder box, and we can expect serious trouble and disorder if he loses. He is telling us to expect disorder if he loses the election. He has warned, without offering a shred of evidence, that the only way he can lose is if there is massive cheating. To Donald Trump, a Harris win is synonymous with a rigged election and widespread fraud.

Listen to him, “They are working overtime trying to sign people, illegally, to vote in the election…which is probably their original thought, because why else would they (presumably Democrats) want to destroy our Country? When I win, those who cheated will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, including long-term prison sentences, so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again. Please be aware that this legal exposure extends to lawyers, political operators, donors, illegal voters, and corrupt election officials. Those involved in unscrupulous behavior will be sought out, caught, and prosecuted at levels, unfortunately, never seen before in our Country.”

Be concerned. Be very concerned.

Given that there has been no indication of massive or statistically measurable election fraud in the United States in the forthcoming election or any other election in recent American history, his threat is ominous. By suggesting that election fraud is a clear and present danger in the United States, he is pinpricking the body politic. He is spreading fear and distrust and antagonizing the gullible among us. He also prepares the electorate to expect disorder if he loses the election.

Harris can only win through cheating, he says.

Trump has instead absurdly claimed that he already has enough votes to win and simply needs to ensure Democrats don’t cheat, insinuating that the only way he could lose is through fraud. Of course, not a single vote has been counted in this election, so Trump’s claim that he already has enough votes to win is senseless.

 “The only way they can do anything is if they cheat like hell, and we’ve been victims of that. … We don’t need the votes; we just want to make sure that they don’t cheat.” Listen to him at an August rally in North Carolina: “Our primary focus is not to get out the vote; it’s to make sure they don’t cheat because we have all the votes you need.”

Trump’s election rhetoric suggests a post-election-day strategy in the event he loses. He is posturing that it is so certain that he will win the election on Tuesday that only a rigged election could account for anything other than a Trump victory. One sure bet is certain. Win or lose, Trump will claim victory.

In typical and classless Trump style, he has called Harris “Crazy Kamala, Lyin’ Kamala, Laffin’ Kamala, and, his latest, “Kamabla.” No one should be surprised at the juvenile level to which his campaign has descended. Donald Trump’s entire campaign has been devoid of any real policy or legislative initiatives. It has been characterized by name-calling, threats, and insults. When asked about his plans and initiatives going forward, the best Trump could come up with is, “I have concepts of a plan,” whatever that means. One can safely conclude that it means nothing. His entire campaign has been a compendium of derisive nicknames for his opponents and threats to exact retribution for offenses that never occurred. Absent is any campaign rhetoric that presents proposals for the American people. Instead, the public is bombarded with complaints about election skullduggery, with virtually no evidence of the purported election foul play.

Nonetheless, Trump’s election fraud drumbeat has hit home with Trump voters. Trump has succeeded in impugning the integrity of America’s election among Trump supporters. According to Pew Research, 87 percent of Harris supporters express confidence that people not qualified to vote will be prevented from voting. In comparison, only 35 percent of Trump supporters are confident that noncitizens will be stopped from voting.

Of course, confidence in the integrity of our elections is essential. Trump has worked hard and achieved significant success in undermining that confidence among his supporters.

That may be the long-lasting remnant of his foray into American politics.

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Recent podcasts have featured my commentary on Liz Cheney’s book, “Oath and Honor,” as well as my commentaries regarding:

U.S. Representative Jim Jordan,

Brian Kemp and Those Republicans of Georgia,

The Trump Indictments,

The Fox Corp Settlement,

The CNN Trump Town Hall,

The Hunter Biden plea deal,

The New American Cult of Personality,

and my interviews with William Bratton, Retired Chief of Police in New York City, Los Angeles, and Boston;

Rikki Klieman, Attorney, Network News Analyst, and best-selling author;

John Thoresen, Executive Director, Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center;

Katherine Gehl, co-author of The Politics Industry and founder of the Institute for Political Innovation;

Jazz artist Ann Hampton Callaway;

Outlander author Diana Gabaldon;

AI Data Scientist Lawrence Kite;

Ryan Clancy, Chief Strategist of No Labels;

Senator Barbara Boxer;

Senator Joe Lieberman;

and Maryland Governor Larry Hogan.

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Novels by Hal Gershowitz