In the rush of events and heat of combat comes the fog of war, its opaqueness accelerated and intensified during our communications revolution. Like all war, political struggle is a noxious environment rife with mis- and disinformation aimed at persuading, coercing, and controlling the thoughts and actions of others.
As supporters of the president, we are inundated with reports—some accurate, some erroneous, most appearing plausible—of voter fraud. In a bitter irony, the despicable partisan behavior of the elitist media during the campaign has resulted in the fact that their attempts at “debunking” these reports only serve to cement them as the gospel truth in the minds of President Trump’s supporters.
Yet, of these continuing reports, not all, or even the vast majority, will prove to be true. And, even if and when instances of voter fraud prove true, it may be impossible to fashion an adequate, equitable legal remedy for the president and, most importantly, the American people.
While it still happens, rare are the instances when vote fraud occurs after the election. It is simply too difficult—and dangerous—to be altering or manufacturing ballots during the canvas. That’s the good news for election integrity.
The bad news is today’s sort of voter fraud is more likely to occur before the election. Phantom ballots, however manufactured and obtained, are submitted and melded with the valid votes. Consequently, because we have an “Australian ballot,” should phantom votes be discovered, it can be exceedingly difficult upon adjudication for the court to divine which ballots they are and, ergo, which candidates should have their vote totals adjusted accordingly.
This is the nightmare scenario for our free republic: systemic voter fraud is proven, but there is no just remedy at hand.
It is not just the president who would be victimized by the lack of a full, fair, and accurate election result. The ultimate victims would be every American citizen. Our consent to be governed would have been hijacked by criminals. And, not the least being harmed would be Joe Biden who, by taking office despite court findings of fraud that cannot be legally rectified, would be viewed as an illegitimate president.
But despite the angst amidst the fog of war, at least we know none of this has yet occurred: no fraud has been legally proven; and, obviously, no remedies fashioned. The legal process, though, has commenced and will determine what did and did not happen in this election.
Over the din of the febrile state-run media’s howls of “Orange Man Bad,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) provides a helpful primer about this post-election process:
Here’s how this must work in our great country: Every legal vote should be counted. Any illegally-submitted ballots must not. All sides must get to observe the process. And the courts are here to apply the laws & resolve disputes.
That’s how Americans’ votes decide the result.
— Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) November 6, 2020
True, in the fog of war the frantic “updates” and “alerts” and “bombshells” will continue unabated, indeed they will accelerate before all is said and done. It will remain a trying time for the foreseeable future. Nerves will fray and fears will mount.
Yet, if one follows the sage advice of long-time Michigan political observer, Greg McNeilly, one can endure and transcend this tumult: “Expect media outlets to give a candidate 270 [electoral votes] today. Awesome. But remember, the process still has 38 days till the [Electoral College] elects a POTUS. Until then every candidate has process rights. This is all a part of our peaceful transition of power.”
On the eve of the election, as every bloviating pundit was pontificating and prognosticating about who would win, I was reminded of the Hollywood insider who was asked how to predict if a movie would be a hit. He replied: “Nobody knows nothing.”
Today, however, we do know two things.
First, Americans demand and deserve to know the vote—and those elected by it—are legitimate.
Second, we need to support President Trump throughout the legally prescribed process that will ensure that determination.
As the Left’s Russiagate lie proved, if large swaths of the public believe an election and those elected by it are illegitimate, the citizenry will grievously suffer. Thus, for the legitimacy of all those elected to public office and the preservation of the consent of the governed, the president has a duty to ensure the election’s integrity; and, if it is found wanting, seek appropriate legal remedy on behalf—not just of his campaign—but on behalf of the entire American people. To do otherwise would be a dereliction of his duty.
He must not be alone in this endeavor. President Trump has had the American people’s back for four years. The least we can do is have his back for the next four weeks.