I say YES. YOU say NO....Numero Tre! Enjoy!

And you chased Pres. Biden out for less.

I am, we all are, hoping the big campaign stop in AZ is indicative of what kind of voter turnout there will be for the Dems in that state. I remain guardedly hopeful.

I read a comment that FG isn’t campaigning too hard because he has ways to steal the election, therefore he doesn’t have to put much effort into it. I’m concerned that there may be some merit to that. I worry that Elon Musk will use his powers to mess up computers tallying votes or something. I remember that many Dems in all states were in the wings waiting to make sure any challenges to the 2020 election were defeated. I know these same kinds of Dems are standing by the ready this time, too. Biden’s remarks show he expects protests and worse with a FG loss. That tells me he and his admin are on alert should it occur. Tragic that it’s come to this.

miriandra, I had seen that video and it’s perfection! Lol!

I read that same item Divine. The one about FG not doing rallies because he didn't really have too. The Reps/FG have plans for stealing the election. That statement does play on the nerves, doesn't it ? Still, I am hopeful that since 'word' is showing up around it that our side knows what is going on and will take steps in advance to nullify these plans, whatever they are.

We get 24 hour news, and you think of having gotten not only ALL the news, but an enormous number of opinions about that news. There is so much more that we are never much told. It may come out in some form or other later, but as in this case — we will be left to wonder just what WILL or WON'T take place when we get up to the election.

I do think one of the very reasons why we are encouraged to keep up (as much as possible) our enthusiasm and assistance and contributions is to hopefully have such good/great numbers on our side that it will make it nearly impossible to nullify the win — in addition of course, to a clear mandate for the changes we would all like to see take place in our government. I am VERY hopeful that between Pres. Biden and VP Harris as President in Nov. that lots of things are being quietly set into place. I would never want to take it for granted and I know the Reps. learned much from 1/6 - 2020, but just looking at all they do and have done and the huge mess and disarray they have been in, along with the worst candidates for pres. and vice pres., I have to feel that we really DO know exactly what they are up to and we will be able to counter it.

Hopefully AZ was just the first in a long line — right up to November of happy cheering crowds for Harris and Walz. If there was a time you could say there is no comparison between what you get on the Reps. side and what you will have from the Democrats side, it is now, hands down. Just beautifully stark.

Trishyla, I agree that Marc Elias has been a great defender of democracy and is definitely gearing up to meet the challenges that will most likely follow this upcoming election. It heartens me, but also angers me that this sort of advocacy has become a necessity. At this point, I will joyfully take any news that gives us reason to hope. Go Blue! ( that’s for our democracy and my LA Dodgers 🙂)

Thanks for telling me about Marc Elias who I hadn’t heard of. I read up a bit on him and see he founded “Democracy Docket” which has a website, so I checked that out, too. I’m glad to know about all this, but cannot say it’s calmed my fears. The GOP strategy to undermine election results is even more pervasive this election and it’s unsettling. I’m grateful that the word is getting out and that Elias and others are doing all in their power to protect election results, but Republican efforts to steal the election are never ending.

Here’s an article from Democracy Docket

by Marc Elias

August 1, 2024

Earlier this week, the Rolling Stone published a deep dive investigation into the pro-Trump election deniers who may refuse to certify accurate election results at the county level. 

In the article, I voiced my concern for this possibility, predicting that “we are going to see mass refusals to certify the elections” because Republicans are “counting on the fact that if they don’t certify in several small counties, you cannot certify these statewide results.”

After Rachel Maddow featured the article on MSNBC, my concern quickly reached far and wide, with thousands of people taking to social media and flooding Democracy Docket’s inbox with questions about how this could happen and what can be done to prevent this seemingly new threat.

In 2022, nearly a dozen counties refused to certify the election results, prompting lawsuits and court orders. 

Democracy Docket is the only news outlet tracking and reporting on all of these cases — sign up for our free daily and weekly newsletters to get the latest updates sent straight to your inbox.

Except, this isn’t a new threat. I have been fighting against it in court for years.

We first saw Republicans deploy this anti-democratic tactic in the aftermath of the 2020 election.  At the time, I was representing Joe Biden and the Democratic Party in recounts, election contests and litigation brought by Donald Trump and his allies.

As Michigan’s county certification date approached, we learned that the Trump campaign was pushing the GOP members of the Wayne County Canvassing Board to vote against certifying the election results in Detroit. Part of that effort, we have since learned, was a call from Trump himself, along with then-RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel, to the local county canvass board members.

Ultimately, this scheme failed as did a subsequent effort to convince the Republican members of the statewide county canvassing board to refuse statewide certification. But its failure was not for lack of effort. 

In 2021, I warned about the need to reform the certification process to prevent these abuses in the future since it was clear from the violent insurrection on Jan. 6 that Trump and his allies would focus their attention on the individual state processes for election certification. To prevent this, I laid out the concrete steps necessary to prevent Republicans from weaponizing certification in the future:

1. Clearly define the power of state officials in the certification process and immediately remove bad actors.
2. Remove unnecessary links in the certification chain.
3. Abolish the requirement that a state’s partisan governor, secretary of state or election board certify the results.

While this wasn’t going to resolve it all, these were three actionable steps that states and Congress could have taken. When that didn’t happen, we then saw Republicans expand the use of weaponizing certification in 2022. 

During the midterm primary elections, at least 10 counties — including four in Pennsylvania — refused to certify accurate election results. After the general election, counties in Arizona and Pennsylvania refused to certify election results that saw Democratic candidates for governor, U.S. Senate and Congress prevail.

Once again, my legal team was forced to bring litigation to protect against election subversion. We sued Cochise County, Arizona and Luzerne County, Pennsylvania and won as they ultimately certified their results. Democracy was protected for at least one more election cycle.

But even so, my fear for future elections remained as the “Big Lie” spread by Trump and his allies became core to the Republican Party. 

Over the course of the last year, Republicans have become bolder in their plans to subvert the election results in 2024. They now speak more openly about the need to control the certification process. They litigate more aggressively to be able to subvert election results. They enact new laws and rules explicitly for this purpose.

But it’s worse this election than previous ones because this year, the GOP is far more organized. They might have tried to subvert the results in a handful of places in 2020 and 2022, but this year, they will try to subvert them all, setting the stage now for what’s to come in November.  

With fewer than 100 days until the election, Republicans are building an election subversion war machine.

They have sacrificed traditional get out the vote activity to fund and recruit for their massive voter suppression program. They have a constellation of well-funded legal groups supplanting these efforts with unlimited money and grassroots volunteers. They are sending their lawyers into courthouses around the country to lay the groundwork for their anti-democratic plans.

So what are pro-democracy advocates like me supposed to do about it? Already, we’re fighting back. We’re in court to prevent Republicans from changing the rules so they can cheat later on. The excitement generated by Democratic candidates from top to bottom is aiding in our own volunteer efforts. And, there are dozens of election officials of both parties who take pride in their work and want a free and fair election.

I am glad that people have awoken to the genuine threat posed by election deniers. It is an opportunity for people to remember to check their voter registration status and make a plan to vote. For people with the time, it may motivate them to volunteer as a poll worker or help a local campaign.

Most importantly, for undecided voters, I hope that it sharpens the stake of this election. I hope it causes them to ask why, if the GOP is so sure it offers the best choice for America, it is committed to depriving its citizens of fair election results.

As sobering as the news is about GOP efforts to undermine the election, I’m glad to be aware of it to so I can spread the info, which I’ve been doing and will continue to do so.

Personal prayer, it seems to me, is one of the simplest necessities of life, as basic to the individual as sunshine, food and water--and at times, of course, more so.  By prayer I mean an effort to get in touch with the Infinite.  We know that our prayers are imperfect.  Of course they are. We are imperfect human beings.  A thousand experiences have convinced me beyond room of doubt that prayer multiplies the strength of the individual and brings within the scope of his capabilities almost any conceivable objective.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Hallelujah.

Just looking at the above bothered me. The evilness, the coldness of the eyes. That sense being presented that he is somehow deserving when to my mind he deserves nothing. Just the whole stance that he uses. I have also had trouble with the word hate. But I will say I could not detest him more.