Reason # 75: Election Conspiracy
Why do we need to defeat Donald Trump and ensure that a Democrat occupies the White House?
We hope that you listened to at least part of the hour-long telephone call from Donald Trump to Brad Raffensperger, the Republican Secretary of State from Georgia. It is spectacular evidence proving the first stage of a conspiracy to overthrow the results of the 2020 Presidential election.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/03/politics/trump-brad-raffensperger-phone-call-transcript/index.html#:~:text=CNN%20has%20obtained%20the%20full%20January%202%20audio%20call%20between
It failed completely.
Did Republicans stop there? No. They next went to the courts, using many of the specious inuendo and outright lies that Trump had used to try to turn Raffensperger. In total, more than 60 legal suits were filed and in no case did a judge, even a judge appointed by Trump or other Republican president, rule in Trump’s favor. There would be no help for Donald from the courts.
Here is the full list, courtesy of the American Bar Association.
https://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_interest/election_law/litigation/#:~:text=Summary:%20Plaintiff%20President%20Trump%20sued%20the%20Wisconsin%20Elections%20Commissions,%20its
To be clear, it was not illegal or improper to ask the courts to act, if there was illegality in voting. Such actions must take place before the date of certification of electors votes on December 14, 2020.
Let’s go back a step.
The National Archives explains that
“States are required to appoint electors in accordance with the laws of the State enacted prior to Election Day. Electors must be appointed on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November (Election Day*).”
https://www.archives.gov/electoral-college/roles#:~:text=Receipt%20of%20Certificates%20of%20Vote.%20Certificates%20of%20Vote%20begin%20arriving
“After the general election, the Executive of each State prepares seven (7) original Certificates of Ascertainment listing the persons appointed as electors. The Executive is required to issue a Certificate no later than 6 days before the electors meet. Federal law does not govern the general appearance of the Certificate of Ascertainment, so the format can vary from State to State. However, Federal law requires that each Certificate of Ascertainment must:
list the names of the electors chosen by the voters and the number of votes received.
list the names of all other candidates for elector and the number of votes received.
be signed by the Executive and carry the seal of the State.
contain at least one security feature, as determined by the State, for purposes of verifying the authenticity of the certificate.”
I apologize for what looks like insignificant detail, but it is necessary to understand how Donald Trump and Republican leaders in seven states
Michigan
Wisconsin,
Pennsylvania,
Georgia
Nevada
Arizona
New Mexico
criminally plotted and attempted to overturn the election results.
What happens to the Certificates of Ascertainment?
“Each State must send one Certificate of Ascertainment to the Archivist of the United States at OFR immediately after the general election results are finalized.
Each State must retain the other six originals and provide them to the electors for the State’s meeting of the electors.”
What happens next?
” On the first Tuesday after the second Wednesday in December, the electors meet in their respective States. The State legislature designates where in the State the meeting will take place, usually in the State capital. At this meeting, the electors cast their votes for President and Vice President.”
This happened on December 14, 2020 and there was no way for Donald Trump to stop it.
After the votes are cast,
“The electors must execute six Certificates of Vote. Federal law requires that each Certificate of Vote must:
- contain two distinct lists, one for President and one for Vice President and must:
o list all persons who received electoral votes for President and the number of electors who voted for each person.
o list all persons who received votes for Vice President and the number of electors who voted for each person.
o not contain the names of persons who did not receive electoral votes. - be signed by all of the electors.
- be attached to an original Certificates of Ascertainment retained by the State.
- must be sealed up and certified by the electors, after being paired with the Certificate of Ascertainment, as containing the list of electoral votes of that State for President and Vice President.”
“Each State must send the six pairs of Certificates to designated Federal and State officials immediately after the meeting of the electors.
When the paired Certificates of Vote and Certificates of Ascertainment have been delivered to the designated Federal and State officials, the States’ Electoral College duties are complete.”
This process was completed in 50 states and Certificates were sent out on December 14, 2020.
The next step was for the president of the Senate i.e. the Vice President, Mike Pence to count the Certificates in the presence of the assembled Senate and House of Representatives and formally declare the new President and Vice-President, in this instance, Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris. The date set by the constitution for this vote was January 6, 2021.
There was nothing further Republicans could do to intervene. Or was there?
In fact, they had set in motion a far more nefarious and conspiratorial plot than ever before seen in American history. To better understand what they did, we need to study a bit more Constitutional law.
Article II, Section 1, Clause 2: of the U.S. Constitution mandates that
“Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.”
https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artII-S1-C2-1/ALDE_00013798/
The process by which electors are chosen is not specified in the Constitution. Generally, each state political party appoints deserving individuals as electors, one for each Senator and Representative. If, for example in 2020, Democrat Joseph Biden won the election, Democratic electors from each state began the complicated process of certifying their electoral votes.
At the very moment that state legislatures were preparing Certificates of Vote, on December 14, 2020, small groups of Republicans were meeting clandestinely in seven states to self-designate themselves as shadow “fake” electors, who would in mirror fashion, fill out Certificates of Vote and Ascertainment and submit them to the Archives.
The endgame was that their Vote Certificates would be presented to Vice President Pence, who would, as instructed by his boss, Donald Trump, toss the legal Certificates and replace them with the fake Certificates. When these were counted, Donald Trump would win the election!
In England during the seventeenth century, such behavior would be judged treason and the state executioner summoned.
We all know how the plot unfolded, but please return tomorrow for a recap.
Can you even conceive of voting for a spoiled brat, so determined to have his own way that he would endanger the republic? I certainly hope not.
Have a heart; use your mind, search your conscience, and vote for Democratic candidates – across the ballot – on November. 5th.
Please share this message with your friends and please, add your thoughts, to expand upon what are only brief sketches here.
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Why have I committed to posting 100 Reasons NOT to vote for Donald Trump? Because I do not have time to post 10,000.
Fred Grannis
October 3, 2024