Trump refuses to commit to peaceful transfer of power if he loses
President Trump refused to commit Wednesday to a peaceful transfer of power should he lose the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden.
At a press conference held in the White House press briefing room, Trump was asked directly about the transfer of power.
“Mr. President, real quickly, win, lose or draw in this election, will you commit here today for a peaceful transferral of power after the election?” asked reporter Brian Karem. “And there has been rioting in Louisville, there has been rioting in many cities across this country, red and... your so-called red and blue states — will you commit to making sure that there is a peaceful transferral of power after the election?”
“Well, we’re going to have to see what happens, you know that. I’ve been complaining very strongly about the ballots, and the ballots are a disaster,” Trump responded.
“I understand that, but people are rioting,” Karem continued. “Do you commit to making a peaceful transferral of power—”
“Get rid of the ballots and you’ll have a very peaceful — there won’t be a transfer, frankly, there will be a continuation. The ballots are out of control. You know it and you know who knows it better than anybody else? The Democrats know it better than anybody else.”
Trump’s remarks drew a quick rebuke from Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, the only Republican in the Senate to vote for Trump’s removal from office during the impeachment trial earlier this year.
Fundamental to democracy is the peaceful transition of power; without that, there is Belarus. Any suggestion that a president might not respect this Constitutional guarantee is both unthinkable and unacceptable.
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) September 24, 2020
Earlier in the day, Trump said that the Senate should confirm his forthcoming Supreme Court nominee because he believed the results of the election would be decided by the court.
“I think this will end up in the Supreme Court,” Trump said. “And I think it’s very important we have nine justices.”
Trump, who has spent weeks railing against mail-in voting, said the court would be needed to rule on the validity of the election.
“But I think it’s better if you go before the election because I think this — this scam that the Democrats are pulling — it’s a scam, the scam will be before the United States Supreme Court,” Trump said.
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