Trump Knew He Lost, But Fought to Stay in Power,” Says Voting Rights Attorney on Jack Smith Filing
Rebecca Blackwell/AP
Special counsel Jack Smith’s latest filing in the federal election conspiracy case against former President Donald Trump is a major development, according to voting rights attorney Marc Elias. During an interview on MSNBC with Nicolle Wallace, Elias explained the significance of the new evidence, particularly in showing that Trump knew he lost the 2020 election but still tried to overturn the results.
“I think this is a blockbuster document, but one sentence encapsulates it all,” said Elias. “Donald Trump told his family, ‘It didn’t matter if you won or lost the election, you still have to fight like hell.’ He knew he lost. He put the nation through 60-plus lawsuits. When that failed, he organized an insurrection of the nation’s Capitol. This man should not be anywhere near the Oval Office.”
More: Netflix Faces Surge in Cancellations After Reed Hastings’ $7 Million Donation to Kamala Harris
More: Trump Calls for Kamala Harris to Be ‘Impeached and Prosecuted’ Amid Heated Border Debate
Elias emphasized that the timeline Smith laid out shows how Trump orchestrated the efforts to overturn the election in ways that did not involve his official duties, which is key to bypassing the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity. Smith’s filing illustrates that Trump was engaged in a private campaign to subvert the results, separate from any presidential actions.
Elias referenced a specific example from the filing, noting, “If you go back to a much more mundane part of the post-election… Donald Trump wound up placing a call to the state canvassing board members for Wayne County, Michigan. It was kind of an odd thing at the time that you had the President of the United States calling two local canvass board members with the RNC chairwoman trying to pressure them not to certify Detroit.”
This incident, Elias explained, was part of a larger pattern, leading to Trump’s now-infamous phone call to Georgia’s Republican secretary of state, where he demanded the official “find” extra votes to change the outcome. “We know now he was hands-on in almost every stage of this post-election process for almost everything we are aware of that was done wrong,” Elias said.
More: Data Scientist Predicts Kamala Harris Will Defeat Trump in 2024 Election Landslide
More: Donald Trump’s Surprising Two-Word Reaction to Kamala Harris’ Bold Handshake Move!
“He is hands-on in trying to pressure Mike Pence. He is hands-on in trying to pressure or to build this January 6th insurrection rally effort. He was involved because he did not want to lose power.” Elias concluded by stressing that Trump’s relentless efforts to stay in power, even after losing the election, reveal his dangerous disregard for democratic principles and the rule of law.
