President Trump on Saturday touted a “big protest” in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, the day Congress is set to reconvene and vote to certify the Electoral College’s finding that Democrat Joe Biden defeated the president by 74 electoral votes, 306-232.
The encouragement for a “wild” protest came as Trump retweeted a report from Director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy Peter Navarro that claims to have found “several examples of voting irregularities that are ‘more than sufficient’ to swing the outcome of the election in President Trump’s favor.”
“Peter Navarro releases 36-page report alleging election fraud ‘more than sufficient’ to swing victory to Trump. A great report by Peter. Statistically impossible to have lost the 2020 Election. Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!” Trump wrote.
Peter Navarro releases 36-page report alleging election fraud 'more than sufficient' to swing victory to Trump https://t.co/D8KrMHnFdK. A great report by Peter. Statistically impossible to have lost the 2020 Election. Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 19, 2020
Twitter added a warning to the president’s post, saying: “This claim about election fraud is disputed.”
A team of Trump lawyers has lost more than 50 lawsuits claiming that voter fraud and irregularities led to Biden’s win. Recounts in several states rerouted a few hundred votes but did not change state election outcomes. The U.S. Supreme Court also rejected a plea to step in, refusing to hear a case that reached the high court.
The Washington Examiner wrote in a piece that Navarro’s 36-page report “assesses the fairness and integrity of the 2020 Presidential Election by examining six dimensions of alleged election irregularities across six key battleground states” and concluded that “patterns of election irregularities … are so consistent across the six battleground states that they suggest a coordinated strategy to, if not steal the election, strategically game the election process in such a way as to … unfairly tilt the playing field in favor of the Biden-Harris ticket.”
There have already been some “wild” protests in D.C. Last week, Protesters attending a pro-Trump rally tore down Black Lives Matter signs on two historic black churches and set them on fire.
“For me it was reminiscent of cross burnings,” wrote the Rev. Dr. Ianther M. Mills, senior pastor at Asbury United Methodist Church, one of the churches affected. “Seeing this act on video made me both indignant and determined to fight the evil that has reared its ugly head. We had been so confident that no one would ever vandalize the church, but it has happened.”
Trump was on a Twitter tear on Saturday.
“GREATEST ELECTION FRAUD IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY!!!” he wrote.
GREATEST ELECTION FRAUD IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY!!!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 20, 2020
The president retweeted a post praising Tommy Tuberville, the Republican Alabama senator-elect who last week said he has not ruled out joining a House member to object to the election results when Congress meets Jan. 6.
“So there’s @TTuberville — on his way to the US SENATE. I hear we should be able to COUNT ON HIM on JAN 6th. He’s a world class COACH. Unlike most of the Bozos in the SWAMP—he’s going to Do something, not Be something. Go TOMMY!”
So there’s @TTuberville —on his way to the US SENATE. I hear we should be able to COUNT ON HIM on JAN 6th. He’s a world class COACH. Unlike most of the Bozos in the SWAMP—he’s going to Do something, not Be something. Go TOMMY! pic.twitter.com/X4DY7rPrGq
— Greg Kelly (@gregkellyusa) December 19, 2020
When Trump tweeted: “The lie of the year is that Joe Biden won!” Twitter added a statement that said, “Election officials have certified Joe Biden as the winner of the U.S. Presidential election.”
Trump also wrote: “He didn’t win the Election. He lost all 6 Swing States, by a lot. They then dumped hundreds of thousands of votes in each one, and got caught. Now Republican politicians have to fight so that their great victory is not stolen. Don’t be weak fools!” Twitter added the same warning to that tweet.
He didn’t win the Election. He lost all 6 Swing States, by a lot. They then dumped hundreds of thousands of votes in each one, and got caught. Now Republican politicians have to fight so that their great victory is not stolen. Don’t be weak fools! https://t.co/d9Bgu8XPIj
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 19, 2020