Trump’s advisers have been working for months to move his focus away from baseless theories of election fraud. A group of outsiders is making that difficult.
Of all the outside advisers urging President Trump to seize control of federal elections this fall, the attorney Peter Ticktin can claim the deepest ties; the two men went to military school together as teenagers. In 2022, Ticktin helped Trump sue Hillary Clinton. This year, he pushed Trump to secure a pardon for Tina Peters, a former Colorado clerk convicted of charges related to tampering with election equipment.
Which is why it might be worth listening when Ticktin says that Trump could do something soon to take over elections. “He’s the only one that I know for sure has the understanding of the severity of it,” Ticktin told us this month before taking the stage at an election-skeptic conference in Las Vegas. The way Ticktin sees it, there are three possible outcomes this fall. The first—a smooth election—won’t happen in his view because, he claims without evidence, Democrats already cheated in the primaries. The second is that Trump takes action before the election to prevent cheating. The last option is that Trump tries to declare martial law on or around November 3. “Either martial law, or step aside,” he told us about Trump’s choices in the last scenario. When we asked about the prospect of riots if Trump tries to overturn the election results, Ticktin said he was not concerned. “Believe me, our armed forces are a lot bigger than they are,” he said.
Trump has already tried to claim greater federal control over elections, which under the Constitution are administered primarily at the state and local level. In February, he said Republicans should nationalize voting in at least 15 places. In August, when the television and radio host Wayne Allyn Root pushed Trump to declare a “national-security emergency” to require proof of citizenship, voter ID, and other measures, Trump played coy: “Let me just say that stranger things have happened, okay? I’ll leave it at that.” Later that month, Trump posted a Root column on the topic, with a headline that described the plan as “foolproof.” Peters announced after meeting with Trump in June that the president “basically said to his lead counsel to do what I was asking.” In a prime-time address at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Trump again repeated the false claim that he had won the 2020 election, and sarcastically encouraged his supporters to “cheat like hell” in the upcoming elections.
This is definitely going to happen, and there is no precedent as to how to deal with it, which makes it more likely it will succeed, as the opposition will be scattered.
Current polling puts the midterm elections into the blowout category, with Trump and his allies going down in flames. If Democrats take control, there will be a reckoning. Trump can’t have that. He’s old and knows that when this run is over, he faces inquiries and likely prison. He can’t have that. He will do everything in his power, legal or illegal, to remain in power. He’s literally told his republican supporters to “cheat like hell”, and to vote, regardless of whether they are registered or not. These are not idle words, they are a call to action.
If Trump does not declare martial law, and the elections come to pass and the democrats win, as strongly indicated by current polling, the next thing will be to claim fraud and refuse to swear them in. While I’d like to think that the Supreme Court might stop such a thing, I’m not confident that is the case.
Pretty compelling story if he nukes Iran, declares unprecedted war situation, declares lockdown, suspends elections, conducts purges , etc.
So, what do we do if he does declare martial law before the election?
Not trolling. What should people do? Im looking for any real answer beyond a vague 2nd amendment statement. Just “get your guns” is not an answer. We will be outgunned and murdered if we just grab guns and go to polling places.
Real answer anyone?
There isn’t a great answer. The states should file an immediate lawsuit seeking an injunction against the declaration. Depending on the timing, that may well be too little too late. However, if the election is impaired in any way, there should be a nationwide general strike. Everything should be shut down, period. The brave can demonstrate in public, and risk being shot. Those who want to fight back can specifically target companies that support the administration in a variety of unique ways beyond simple boycotts. We will we need to view the U.S. as a country occupied by a hostile force, which is exactly what it would be. Not give up and capitulate, but quietly work to impede the hostile force and grind everything to a halt. Money is the lifeblood of these losers, and impairing their ability to make it is how to hurt them.
What we should have been doing since 2016. Building a shadow state, the same way the Republicans have. A coalition of the willing prepared to organize, do logistics, move people and resources outside official channels. Organize community relief efforts and distribute information that subverts the Trumpists narrative. Make no mistake there may be a time where violence becomes unavoidable, but even then, an army marches on its stomach. The most powerful weapon ever built isn’t a nuclear bomb, its logistics, and it always has been.
You may be right.
But.
Thats no reason to just let them win. How many feds can they send to the polls in the US? How many people will be voting at each location? Imagine if half the voters, or more, were armed. Dont tell me “ThAt’S iLlEgAl”, because its also illegal to send ice/feds/solders to the polls.
Imagine you are standing on the third story of a burning building. If you jump, you will probably live, but you’re going to get hurt. A broken leg or arm. The alternative is burning to death in a fire.
We are on the third story of a burning building now. We see what we have to do. Its not ideal. Its not painless. Its not perfect. We’re going to get hurt.
But the alternative is much worse.
I need $5. And your vote. Just vote harder. And $5.
—The Democratic Establishment