With the 2020 election expected to see record numbers of ballots cast by mail, President Donald Trump and his allies have encouraged skepticism of the process with largely baseless claims that mail-in voting is rife with fraud.
Trump escalated these attacks on the 100+ year old institution during a briefing in the swing state of North Carolina, where he encouraged North Carolinians to vote twice as a way to test the system.
Watch below.
Trump is encouraging people to vote twice?
pic.twitter.com/Xsr8MLcXxv
— T-Rox (@Whateva691) September 3, 2020
Trump said:
"Let them send [the absentee ballot] in and let them go vote, and if their system's as good as they say it is, then obviously they won't be able to vote. If it isn't tabulated, they'll be able to vote."
People were baffled that Trump was suddenly encouraging his supporters to commit the very felony he's warned them against.
Former Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) pointed this out on Twitter.
See below. Trump committed a felony in North Carolina yesterday. In plain view. On video. Anyone going to charge him? https://t.co/AMt3Z10WtD
— Claire McCaskill (@clairecmc) September 3, 2020
McCaskill cited the North Carolina law which states that it's a felony:
"For any person with intent to commit a fraud to register or vote at more than one precinct or more than one time, or to induce another to do so, in the same primary or election, or to vote illegally at any primary or election."
The former Senator argued that Trump was inducing his supporters to commit voter fraud by encouraging them to try to vote twice.
Others agreed.
Memo to Mr. Trump:
You're committing a felony by urging North Carolinians to cast illegal second votes.
Not that you care. https://t.co/F12UD1BL61
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) September 3, 2020
The President just committed a felony.👀https://t.co/kgvMOCJYfz
— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) September 2, 2020
Trump tells his voters in NC to vote twice - by mail and then in person - to “test" the system. Is urging someone to commit felony election fraud an offense in itself?
— Helen Kennedy (@HelenKennedy) September 2, 2020
This is another impeachable offense.
North Carolina voters who do this should be arrested, charged with felony. They should be warned now, by local officials.
Trump suggests voting twice, once by mail and once in person https://t.co/Wp31CrfDvw
— Michelangelo Signorile, subscribe to my newsletter (@MSignorile) September 3, 2020
Trump committed a new felony today. Telling NC voters to vote twice is conspiracy/incitement or both. Someone will try it. Add it to what he'll be prosecuted for in 2021. He's so far gone from dementia he made the huge mistake of committing a crime on TVhttps://t.co/3UkGRRcHyP
— Tom Joseph (@TomJChicago) September 2, 2020
So today Trump committed a class I felony. https://t.co/3g9rMQIWiZ
— Bryan 🇺🇸 #PoliceThePolice (@swimmerbr78) September 3, 2020
In an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, Attorney General William Barr was asked about Trump's comments and claimed not to know whether or not it's legal in some states to vote twice (it's illegal in all states).
Just watch Bill Barr - the top law enforcement official in the United States - pretend that he's not sure if it's illegal to vote twice.
Beyond shameless. Beyond.pic.twitter.com/vPeiF4ctwF
— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) September 2, 2020
People don't expect Trump to answer to the apparent crime he committed while in office.
Add it to the list of things nothing will get done about, I am starting to believe he could shoot someone on 5th avenue and nothing would happen he's killed over 180,000 and nothing..
— Tasha Washa Isnogood (@TashaWasha123) September 3, 2020
He's got a very experienced mob lawyer—excuse me: Attorney-General—defending him.
— Aviel Roshwald (@RoshwaldAviel) September 3, 2020
Yeah, Bill Barr is going to get right on that!
NOT!
— The honorable K. L. Wood (@kladwood) September 3, 2020
@GregAbbott_TX/X
