Trump campaign is contacting local election offices, telling them to ignore states' election laws

[EleanorR]

Link to tweet

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — When Donald Trump’s campaign took issue with a new rule on processing some votes in North Carolina, it didn’t just complain to the Board of Elections and file a lawsuit. It wrote to some of the state’s 100 local election offices with extraordinary guidance: Ignore that rule.

“The NC Republican Party advises you to not follow the procedures,” Trump campaign operative Heather Ford wrote in an email to county officials last week.

The email urging defiance was a small glimpse at the unusually aggressive, hyperlocal legal strategy the Trump campaign is activating as voting begins. Through threatening letters, lawsuits, viral videos and presidential misinformation, the campaign and its GOP allies are going to new lengths to contest election procedures county-by-county across battleground states.

[durablend]

1. This is why all the "Trump is *done for*" comments are ridiculous

The lawsuits and cheating are going to be epic.

[bullimiami]

2. This must be criminal interference in voting.

[DLCWIdem]

4. Yeah. But who do you complain to. The DOJ and Barr

[njhoneybadger]

8. Right, Welcome to Russia

[Bernardo de La Paz]

11. Dosvidanya tovarich. Comrades standing by to take your call. Please wait while we start recording.nt

[Salviati]

19. Breaking state laws is a state crime.

A presidential pardon isn't going to help you against those charges.

[dansolo]

20. Complain to the NC Attorney General

Josh Stein, who is a Democrat

[ancianita]

22. +1

And the Democratic governor, Roy Cooper

[Karma13612]

10. UN election monitors, NOW! n/t

[Tommymac]

24. EU was going to send hundreds...but becasue of COVID now only a handful.

WE are on our own.

And WE are going to overcome.

GOTV and Vote Joe & Kamala

[Karma13612]

29. Yea I read that somewhere awhile back.

Darn it.

But I agree that we are going to be strong and prevail.

[benfranklin1776]

12. Agreed. And myriad other violations of those state's criminal codes.

So this criminality needs referred immediately to those state’s attorney generals or the local district attorneys for prosecution. Their wanton lawbreaking interfering with the people’s most sacred right paid for by the blood and sacrifice of millions demands the harshest punishment the law allows.

[bullimiami]

14. NCAG should inform them violation of law means prosecution. Do poll workers have to take an oath?

[benfranklin1776]

15. Good idea.

Yes my understanding is that some official poll workers, i.e, judges of elections who act in a quasi judicial capacity, do take an oath yes. But the requirements vary by position and state. However adherence to election laws, and the legal duties of those officials and campaign functionaries is spelled out in the election laws of every state and every state imposes penalties for those that flout them; so no matter what the state there are ample state legal remedies to address such illegalities. Hence, a warning like you propose followed by some high profile prosecutions should operate to deter those who are cavalierly violating the law. They need to be made to realize they’ll be paying the heavy personal price long after their psychopathic leader is gone.

[Sanity Claws]

3. From the alleged law and order president

Haha. You couldn't make this shit up.

[woodsprite]

6. He's only the "law and order" president if he makes up the laws and gives the orders. nt

[BeckyDem]

5. Watch the red state governors, his crooks waiting to help him.

[Mike 03]

7. Very important report.

Wisconsin state elections officials have already warned the Trump campaign off once after it sent a survey to local elections offices asking for details on procedures. Such surveys can help find issues to be litigated — but they also are a way for campaigns to make connections with local election officials who will help determine their success. The Trump campaign noted that such surveys are standard and also sent by Democrats.

Rick Hasen, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine who has been a frequent critic of Trump’s approach to voting, said there’s a difference between campaigns talking to election offices and trying to pressure them.

[Karma13612]

9. This right here is the reason why I think

The UN Election Monitoring team should rethink their strategy of minimizing how many watchers they send.

Wasn’t it reported that they scaled back due to COVID and because we basically said we didn’t want them?

I want them, the voters want them, we need them.

This could really be a disaster if allowed to multiply to more states and more districts across the country.
Sorry but I can’t be calm hearing about this.

[oldsoftie]

13. Another reason to go to the polls. Those votes are counted automatically.

If most are able to do that, I think he loses ON election night & there wont be any of this "Stop the counting" bullshit

[scipan]

23. Another reason to not go to the polls

There's a reason why Trump is concentrating on mail in/ drop off ballots. Paper backup. Maybe if your polling place uses paper ballots it's okay, but I wouldn't trust those electronic machines. In 2016 Putin reportedly held back on doing everything they could, i.e., changing the count. Not this time.

[oldsoftie]

31. But he's going to try to stop the counting if he's ahead. I want him to lose 11/4-5

I want to see him reverse his BS & start screaming "Not all the ballots have been counted!!"

[yellowdogintexas]

34. the biggest swing state (TExas) starts counting ballots as they start arriving

The only ones which should be remaining for the Ballot Board to review will be the ones which arrive Nov 3 before 7:00 pm.

Counties with 100000 or fewer total population have to wait until early voting ends before beginning their count. That is still 3 full days plus Election Day to get it done - early voting ends Oct 30 .

The early vote (both in person and by mail) combined will be that first big number that pops up after the polls close.

[ihas2stinkyfeet]

16. treason. pure and simple.

hang these bastards.

[NoMoreRepugs]

17. Why expect anything less?? The tRump family knows their fate is not a good one if the

donald loses the election. Hence, WHATEVER has to be done or said to influence the election will happen.

[Chakaconcarne]

18. They may also use a 2nd wave (which is showing itself more every day) to introduce further chaos

and of course it will be happening in blue states who will be more inclined to shut down and mail in voting in the courts.

[DallasNE]

21. Where Is The Legal Basis For Any Of This

Why not just ask for a cease and desist order against Trump people. There is no federal issue here.

[Crunchy Frog]

25. Can anyone stop them? Will anybody try?

I guess we'll find out soon.

[intheflow]

32. I'm not defending them, but

I think this could be interpreted as civil disobedience. Or at least, some variation on that theme could be their argument.

[DallasNE]

33. I Could See Your Point

If people were independently gumming up the works but that is not what is happening here. Here people are being ordered to gum up the works under the authority of the Trump campaign. They don't have that authority. Not even close. This is pure Fascist.

[intheflow]

37. Of course! Everything out of this admin is spin.

But they're really good at double-speak & gaslighting, such as the prevailing beliefs that the Tea Party was a grass roots movement instead of astroturf, and that Trump was elected instead of selected, or even that Trump was a successful business man. It's not what makes sense, it's how they can twist concepts to fit their own perverse ends. That's why I think they'll claim civil disobedience, at a federal level.

[Crunchy Frog]

26. So if an illegitimate electoral process produces an illegitimate president, what do we do then?

Especially if the rule of law is no longer in effect?

[spanone]

27. It's called 'stealing an election'

[BainsBane]

28. the "law and order" president

Who repeatedly violates federal and state laws.

[muriel_volestrangler]

30. Barry Richard, who represented GWB in Florida 2000: "generalized strategy to suppress the vote"

Fuck, when a Republican operative is calling this out, it's bad:

“It’s clearly based on an overall strategy to disrupt the election as much as possible,” said Barry Richard, who represented President George W. Bush’s campaign in the 2000 Florida recount. “You’re really seeing a broad-based, generalized strategy to suppress the vote by the Republican Party.”

[IronLionZion]

35. Obama won North Carolina so they're afraid Biden will too

GOP are shameless. They obviously think Dem votes matter even in previously red states. NC has had demographic changes and a very competitive Senate race this year.

[certainot]

36. their electioin obstruction starts w/rw talk radio and 4 NC unis support 16 limbaugh stations

from fakenewsradio.org - NORTH CAROLINA 16 North Carolina 8, North Carolina State 3, Duke 3, East Carolina 2

those stations depend on those sports broadcasting associations to attract advertisers

the coming voter fraud/obstruction will be coordinated through those stations - they can't do it through fox stations - every event favoring their efforts will be locally blown up to intimidate election officials and incite armed 'poll watchers' - dittoheads - to stop counting and recounting etc

the republicans are using the athletes on those teams to help pay for all that

and those 16 are just a few of the 260 limbaugh stations across the country that depend on 87 universities to keep supporting trump and racism and global warming denial

it's fucking ridiculous