White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Thursday attempted to walk back and clarify President Joe Biden’s remarks that he worries the 2022 midterm elections might not be “legit” due to new Republican-enacted voting restrictions, which became fodder for former President Donald Trump to say Biden somehow admitted to the continuously debunked claim there was widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
Former President Donald Trump speaks after the fight between Evander Holyfield and Vitor Belfort at … [+] Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on September 11, 2021 in Hollywood, Florida. (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
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Key Facts
Biden on Wednesday said “I’m not saying it’s going to be legit” when asked a question about the integrity of the 2022 elections, plugging a Democratic voting rights bill as the only way to ensure the elections will be run fairly.
Trump in a statement Thursday morning claimed “President Biden admitted yesterday, in his own very different way, that the 2020 election may very well have been a fraud,” even though Biden was not referring to the 2020 election, and repeated court challenges and analyses of the election have affirmed it was conducted fairly.
Psaki first took to Twitter Thursday to attempt to clarify Biden’s comments, saying he was “explaining” the election results could be illegitimate if “states do what the former president asked them to do after the 2020 election: toss out ballots and overturn results after the fact.”
Psaki then appeared for an interview on Fox News, in which she more forcefully said “he absolutely is not predicting that the 2022 elections would be illegitimate,” appearing to directly contradict some of the president’s comments.
Crucial Quote
“The increase in the prospect of being illegitimate is in direct proportion to us not being able to get these reforms passed,” Biden said Wednesday, pushing for a voting reform bill.
Surprising Fact
Biden’s news conference, which he held to mark one full year in office, was widely panned, and the White House appeared to take damage control measures Thursday in response. Another comment from the briefing that received significant attention was Biden’s prediction that Russia “will move in” to Ukraine, while noting there is disagreement among NATO members about how to respond to a “minor incursion,” which Biden went on to define as “Russian forces crossing the border, killing Ukrainian fighters.” At an infrastructure event Thursday, Biden reiterated American support for Ukraine in the event of a Russian invasion, saying “If any assembled Russian units move across the Ukrainian border, that is an invasion. Let there be no doubt if Putin makes this choice, Russia will pay a heavy price.”
Key Background
Democratic efforts to pass a sweeping voting rights bill appear doomed after the Senate failed to pass a change to filibuster rules that would have dropped the 60-vote threshold needed to end debate on the bill. Despite Biden endorsing the move, centrist Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) opposed the effort, enough to kill any chance of the bill passing given unanimous Republican opposition. Biden and congressional Democrats consider the bill one of the signature pieces of their legislative agenda, and claim its passage is urgent since Republican-controlled state legislatures throughout the U.S. have enacted new rules making it harder to vote, apparently in response to Trump’s fraud assertions. According to the Brennan Center for Justice, at least 34 laws restricting voting access were passed in 19 states during 2021.
Further Reading
Biden says elections might not be legitimate if reform bills aren’t passed (The Hill)
Psaki tells Fox News that Biden ‘absolutely is not predicting that the 2022 elections would be illegitimate’ (Insider)
Biden predicts Russia ‘will move in’ to Ukraine, but says ‘minor incursion’ may prompt discussion over consequences (CNN)
Senate Democrats Fail To Advance Voting Rights Bill — And Fall Short Of Changing Filibuster (Forbes)
White House Attempts Damage Control As Trump Seizes On Biden’s Comments About ‘Legit’ Elections
Topline
White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Thursday attempted to walk back and clarify President Joe Biden’s remarks that he worries the 2022 midterm elections might not be “legit” due to new Republican-enacted voting restrictions, which became fodder for former President Donald Trump to say Biden somehow admitted to the continuously debunked claim there was widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
Former President Donald Trump speaks after the fight between Evander Holyfield and Vitor Belfort at … [+] Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on September 11, 2021 in Hollywood, Florida. (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
Key Facts
Biden on Wednesday said “I’m not saying it’s going to be legit” when asked a question about the integrity of the 2022 elections, plugging a Democratic voting rights bill as the only way to ensure the elections will be run fairly.
Trump in a statement Thursday morning claimed “President Biden admitted yesterday, in his own very different way, that the 2020 election may very well have been a fraud,” even though Biden was not referring to the 2020 election, and repeated court challenges and analyses of the election have affirmed it was conducted fairly.
Psaki first took to Twitter Thursday to attempt to clarify Biden’s comments, saying he was “explaining” the election results could be illegitimate if “states do what the former president asked them to do after the 2020 election: toss out ballots and overturn results after the fact.”
Psaki then appeared for an interview on Fox News, in which she more forcefully said “he absolutely is not predicting that the 2022 elections would be illegitimate,” appearing to directly contradict some of the president’s comments.
Crucial Quote
“The increase in the prospect of being illegitimate is in direct proportion to us not being able to get these reforms passed,” Biden said Wednesday, pushing for a voting reform bill.
Surprising Fact
Biden’s news conference, which he held to mark one full year in office, was widely panned, and the White House appeared to take damage control measures Thursday in response. Another comment from the briefing that received significant attention was Biden’s prediction that Russia “will move in” to Ukraine, while noting there is disagreement among NATO members about how to respond to a “minor incursion,” which Biden went on to define as “Russian forces crossing the border, killing Ukrainian fighters.” At an infrastructure event Thursday, Biden reiterated American support for Ukraine in the event of a Russian invasion, saying “If any assembled Russian units move across the Ukrainian border, that is an invasion. Let there be no doubt if Putin makes this choice, Russia will pay a heavy price.”
Key Background
Democratic efforts to pass a sweeping voting rights bill appear doomed after the Senate failed to pass a change to filibuster rules that would have dropped the 60-vote threshold needed to end debate on the bill. Despite Biden endorsing the move, centrist Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) opposed the effort, enough to kill any chance of the bill passing given unanimous Republican opposition. Biden and congressional Democrats consider the bill one of the signature pieces of their legislative agenda, and claim its passage is urgent since Republican-controlled state legislatures throughout the U.S. have enacted new rules making it harder to vote, apparently in response to Trump’s fraud assertions. According to the Brennan Center for Justice, at least 34 laws restricting voting access were passed in 19 states during 2021.
Further Reading
Biden says elections might not be legitimate if reform bills aren’t passed (The Hill)
Psaki tells Fox News that Biden ‘absolutely is not predicting that the 2022 elections would be illegitimate’ (Insider)
Biden predicts Russia ‘will move in’ to Ukraine, but says ‘minor incursion’ may prompt discussion over consequences (CNN)
Senate Democrats Fail To Advance Voting Rights Bill — And Fall Short Of Changing Filibuster (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2022/01/20/white-house-attempts-damage-control-as-trump-seizes-on-bidens-comments-about-legit-elections/