Vladimir Putin really had his way with Donald Trump last week. We know that Putin and Trump’s closed-door meeting in Alaska left Trump staffers looking “ashen” and “shocked.” We know that whatever went down in Alaska was bad enough that President Zelenskyy immediately lit up the Bat Signal and Europe’s leaders immediately flew to Washington on Monday. But it wasn’t all international catastrophes. Apparently, Putin has now convinced Trump that he needs to discourage Americans from voting by mail-in ballots AND voting machines.
President Trump announced Monday on his social media site, Truth Social, that he plans to “lead a movement” to get rid of mail-in ballots and voting machines in the country ahead of next year’s midterm elections.
Part of his plan includes signing an executive order that bars states from using mail ballots and potentially some voting machines. He said, without evidence, that voting machines are “highly inaccurate,” as well as more expensive and less reliable than counting paper ballots.
“We’re going to start with an executive order that’s being written right now by the best lawyers in the country to end mail in ballots because they’re corrupt,” Trump said during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House Monday. “And it’s time that the Republicans get tough and stop it because the Democrats want it. It’s the only way they can get elected.”
Although Trump himself urged his supporters to vote using mail-in ballots prior to the 2024 presidential election, Democrats have been significantly more likely to vote using mail-in ballots, compared to Republicans, since the 2020 election. That gap has only gotten wider in recent elections as GOP-led states have passed more restrictions on this method of voting. But legal experts say Trump does not have the legal authority to tell states how to run their elections.
Michael Morley, a professor at Florida State University College of Law, told NPR that the Constitution gives Congress – not the president – the power to regulate federal elections.
“There’s really nothing that the executive branch can do on its own in terms of direct mandates,” he said.
“It’s time that the Republicans get tough and stop it because the Democrats want it. It’s the only way they can get elected.” It’s true, the only way Democrats can get elected is by people voting for them. This reminds me of the 2020 election when Trump and many Republicans sowed distrust in mail-in ballots, which ended up suppressing the Republican vote. If Trump keeps telling his cult that they can’t trust mail-in ballots or voting machines, they’ll believe him and they might just stay home. Isn’t it funny/grotesque that Trump has got this particular bug up his ass just a few days after he met Putin face-to-face? It’s especially funny when you consider Russia’s years of interference with American elections.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
