In a recent exchange on CNN’s Sunday broadcast, Jake Tapper revisited a pivotal moment from 2020 with Senator Tom Cotton, noting the Republican senator’s stance in 2020 that former President Donald Trump would "of course" accept the results of that year's general election, which Trump ultimately lost handily to President Joe Biden.
Tapper said he would replay a clip of what Cotton said the last time he appeared on Tapper's program in September 2020 "after Donald Trump, then the president, cast doubt on whether he would ultimately support the peaceful transfer of power should then-Vice President Biden win."
Tapper replayed the clip in which he had expressed alarm over Trump’s statements, to which Cotton dismissed any concerns that Trump might not accept the results of the election.
At the time, Tapper said:
"It's really quite alarming to a lot of Republicans his [Trump's] refusal to say, 'Of course if I lose I will abide by the peaceful transfer of power.'
To that, Cotton responded dismissively:
“He’s since said that if there’s a clear winner at this court-settled contested election that of course he will. But the premise of the question that you just played me, Jake, is that the president is going to lose. I don’t think the president’s going to lose; the president is going to win.”
You can watch what happened next in the video below.
After playing the clip, Tapper said:
“It’s a prediction that didn’t age very well. Not only did President Trump lose, he did not accept the court-settled contested election, as you phrased it, or abide by the peaceful transfer of power.”
Cotton responded that he "might need to come on [Tapper's program] more often because there's a difference from how we [Republicans] were four years ago," adding:
"Jake, I believe the President has said as I have said about this election. Of course we will accept the results if the results are from fair and free elections."
“Any candidate in any race has a right to go to court and seek legal redress if they think there’s been any kind of fraud or cheating, if they think a state or a city didn’t follow the rules or customary practices of their elections."
“I think that that’s reasonable for President Trump to say, it’s reasonable for any candidate for any office in America to believe.”
Tapper then pushed back:
"I don't disagree but that's not what happened in 2020. I mean, he contested it up to the U.S. Supreme Court and then it went past that as you know."
Cotton replied by reframing the insurrection of January 6, 2021, the day a mob of Trump's supporters attacked the United States Capitol on the false premise the election had been stolen:
"Look, what happened on January 6, 2021 is there was a protest in Washington that got out of hand that became a riot and as I've said from the very beginning, anyone who injured a law enforcement officer or committed acts of violence should be prosecuted and face severe consequences."
This, of course, flies in the face of Donald Trump's pledge to pardon the rioters, calling them "hostages."
Many online appreciated Tapper's call out and criticized Cotton for his remarks.
Cotton has previously referred to those who participated in the attack on the Capitol as "insurrectionists," decrying their actions in a statement on that very day. However, he later voted against creating an independent commission to investigate the attack.
He has been described as one of Trumpism's "leading voices." A Washington Post profile noted that he "appears convinced that Trump has fundamentally turned the GOP to a more nationalist, populist tone" and "wants to be on the leading edge of that movement."
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