Judges around the country are throwing out lawsuits that make unfounded claims of voter fraud, so now MAGA is trying a new strategy — threatening a coup — in response to Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election win.
Biden is ahead of Donald Trump by more than 5 million votes with 290 electoral votes to Trump’s 214.
While global leaders including Canada’s Justin Trudeau and Germany’s Angela Merkel called Biden to congratulate him on his victory, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo chuckled as he talked about impeding free and fair elections during a Tuesday press conference.
“There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration,” Pompeo said with a smile. “Alright? We’re ready. The world is watching what’s taking place. We’re going to count all the votes. When the process is complete, there will be electors selected. There’s a process. The Constitution lays it out pretty clearly.”
The secretary of state is the president’s chief foreign affairs adviser. He carries out the president’s foreign policies through the State Department and the U.S. Foreign Service. The word “democracy” doesn’t show up on the MAGA State Department website page titled “Duties of the Secretary of State.”
Listen to GHOGH with Jamarlin Martin | Episode 73: Jamarlin Martin Jamarlin makes the case for why this is a multi-factor rebellion vs. just protests about George Floyd. He discusses the Democratic Party’s sneaky relationship with the police in cities and states under Dem control, and why Joe Biden is a cop and the Steve Jobs of mass incarceration.
“But joke or no, the president of the United States and his allies actively undermining the peaceful, democratic transfer of power is no laughing matter, and certainly not something the secretary of state should be making light of,” Alex Ward wrote for Vox.
Trump fired Pentagon Chief Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Monday in what was expected to be the first in a Cabinet-member purge following the election of former Vice President Biden. Pentagon policy chief James Anderson resigned Tuesday, replaced by controversial retired Brig. Gen. Anthony Tata, a proponent of conspiracy theories. Retired Navy Vice Adm. Joseph Kernan, the undersecretary of defense for intelligence, was either fired or quit, CNN reported. And Pentagon Chief of Staff Jen Stewart resigned.
Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has fallen out of favor with many inside the White House. Getting rid of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs would be an earthquake, Josh Rogin wrote in a Washington Post opinion piece.
Not everyone is taking it seriously. Slate described Trump’s actions as a “half-assed sort-of coup thing.”
A headline in Slate read, “President Baby Makes One Last Demand That Everyone Pay Attention to Him.” The Slate subhead: “The Trump Vincibility Watch considers the outgoing president’s half-assed sort-of coup thing.”
Trump is trailing Biden by tens of thousands of votes in too many states to expect that a recount would flip them “and in enough swing states to say with confidence that Joe Biden will be the winner when the counts are certified,” Ben Mathis-Lilley wrote for Slate. He’s also trailing by more than 10,000 votes each in Arizona and Georgia, just as a bonus.
In context, Pompeo’s reference to a second Trump administration “reads as a trolling reference to campaign talking points about ‘still seeing a path to victory’ rather than a profession of loyalty to a splinter regime. A lot of talk; no tangible effect on Joe Biden’s chances of taking office in January,” Vox reported.
Twitter responses to Pompeo’s words ranged from grain-of-salt to hair on fire.
“The @GOP coup d’etat is happening in real time. When we hit the streets to protest his failure to concede and leave office, he will have the military on the streets of America to put us down,” Joe Scutella tweeted.
“The military and vet vote went primarily for Biden – very, very unusual. Lots of senior brass who aren’t or are no longer part of the administration would love to see him gone. I’m not saying it’s not a possibility but I don’t think we’re looking at a Winter Palace situation,” Ellin Stein tweeted.
“Get ready for Civil War people,” Jack Cade tweeted. “That’s what they’re trying to create, because they think they can win it. What will stop them? NOTHING!”
“The electoral college will vote and Biden will be the President we elected. WH trespassers will be removed. Don’t take his bait and don’t panic,” Robin Sheldon tweeted.
