It's becoming increasingly clear that Donald Trump is doing everything possible to rig the presidential election, and the opportunity to pack the Supreme Court with a new conservative justice could be his kill shot.
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On Saturday, Trump said during a North Carolina rally that he is "counting on the federal court system" to ensure that the winner is called on election night, November 3, even though millions of ballots will be submitted by mail and may not be counted until days, or even weeks, later.
"We're gonna have a victory on November 3rd the likes of which you've never seen," said Trump. "Now we're counting on the federal court system to make it so we can actually have an evening where we know who wins."
What does that statement tell you?
Trump understands that millions of Biden supporters will be voting by mail and because his supporters are less concerned than Biden's about the coronavirus, they are more likely to vote in-person than Democrats. Election analysts caution that the map that is expected to show solid red on Election Night for a resounding Trump victory, will, however, be a mirage.
“The data is going to show on election night, an incredible victory for Donald Trump. That is likely what to be what we see,” said Josh Mendelsohn, who leads the Michael Bloomberg-funded data analytics agency Hawkfish. "When every legitimate vote is counted, and we get to that final day, which will be the Sunday after election day, it will in fact show that what happened on election night was exactly that, a mirage”.
And so, Trump's campaign will try to use the federal courts to turn that "red mirage" into reality by making the Election Day vote the official result, ensuring his victory while disenfranchising millions of Americans who vote by mail.
It also indicates that Trump believes he will lose if all votes are counted and Republican efforts to suppress the vote fail.
"This is an open admission that Trump hopes to use the Supreme Court to steal the election," said Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) on Twitter.
If he succeeds in adding a new conservative ally on the Supreme Court, his position could be strengthened if Election Day challenges reach the high court for a final decision. So, in effect, getting a new Justice appointed could be Trump's kill shot weapon in his plan to steal the election.
This Huffington Post article points out that numerous states allow for mail-in votes to be counted after the election.
For example, a Michigan state judge ruled Friday that absentee ballots postmarked before Election Day can be counted up to 14 days later. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that ballots postmarked by 8 p.m. on Election Day can be counted up to three days later. And, California has a new law that allows ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted up to 17 days later.
Trump has claimed for months that voting by mail leads to massive voter fraud, despite the fact that there is no evidence of such a claim, even as he has devised his own plans to rig the election.
His new postmaster general imposed new controls on mail delivery that resulted in delays and accusations that the action was being taken to put mailed-in ballots at risk. A federal court in Washington State ruled last week that those steps must be rescinded.
Washington State Chief U.S. District Judge Stanley A. Bastian ruled that Trump and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy were "involved in a politically motivated attack on the efficiency of the Postal Service."
So, the stakes are incredibly high as Democrats seek to delay the Senate confirmation vote for the new Supreme Court justice until after the new president is sworn in.
It could mean the difference between Trump being returned to office with the power of a dictator, or the election of Joe Biden and a return to decent and sensible leadership for our nation.
November 3.