We need to be alert to efforts by Republican authoritarians to steal the election, even after all the votes have been cast and Trump has been soundly defeated.
www.yorkdispatch.com/…
“Republican leaders in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives have called for an audit of the Nov. 3 general election before certifying any results.
In a letter sent Friday to Gov. Tom Wolf, House Speaker Bryan Cutler said the state Supreme Court's decision to extend the deadline for receipt of mail-in ballots was unconstitutional and that the 105,000 provisional ballots cast on Election Day are an indication that something wasn't right.
‘Clearly, the significant number of provisional ballots are indicative of voter issues across the commonwealth,’ he stated.
Cutler also said poll watchers were denied access to ‘meaningfully observe the proceedings’ of precanvassing and canvassing ballots and that Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar issued conflicting guidance about how to handle mail ballots that arrived after Nov. 3.
. . .
York County's Republican state House delegation — Stan Saylor of Windsor Township, Kate Klunk of Hanover, Seth Grove of Dover Township, Dawn Keefer of Franklin Township and Keith Gillespie of Hellam Township — issued their own statement Monday in support of Cutler and Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman's call for an election audit.
‘Numerous questions have been raised about the process, which was muddied by the state Supreme Court’s interference in how the election was to be conducted and conflicting guidance from the Department of State,’ they stated.
In a statement issued later Monday, Keefer said the election's results should not be certified nor should electors be seated until the completion of an audit.”
This is the letter from the PA House Speaker:
“As such, and due directly to these issues (and any others that may arise), I am requesting that a full audit be conducted of the 2020 General Election prior to the certification of any results. . . .
Now, we must take every possible step to ensure that all Pennsylvanians, and all Americans, know that our Commonwealth has conducted the General Election with integrity. That can best be accomplished through an audit and a verification that our election law and processes were appropriately administered and followed.
Like you, I call on all Pennsylvanians to remain calm as we work through these issues.
If we work cooperatively to end the election in an open and transparent manner, then I am confident that regardless of winner, our people can accept the result.”
www.pahousegop.com/...
Why would a delay matter?
“December 8, 2020: The safe harbor deadline in the electoral college Six days before the electoral colleges convene to vote is the "safe harbor" deadline. While states aren't legally required to certify their results by this date, if they so do, they can avoid Congress getting involved and resolving a potential dispute over which candidate won a particular state's electoral college votes.”
www.businessinsider.com/…
And for anyone who thinks this is ‘panic’ or ‘bloviating,’ read this which was published by DK staff not long before the election.
www.dailykos.com/...
Before the election Rachel Maddow interviewed a member of the PA legislature who raised this issue then too.
crooksandliars.com/…
At least three current right wing Supreme Court justices have already said legislatures have essentially unfettered authority to do whatever they want in appointing electors, and that was before Barrett joined the Court, with other conservatives not firmly on record yet. That was the plan in 2000 in Florida if the the recount had gone forward until it was short circuited by Bush v. Gore and the anointing of George W Bush.
This is not yet over. These people are fascists with zero commitment to democracy.
