Senate

Senate Democrats rebuke GOP colleagues who say they’ll oppose Electoral College results

by Tal Axelrod - 01/02/21 4:23 PM ET

Senate Democrats criticized their GOP colleagues after a group of 11 Republicans announced they would oppose the Electoral College results when Congress meets on Wednesday.

A number of Democrats said the group, which is led by Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) and includes Sens. Ron Johnson (Wis.), James Lankford (Okla.), Steve Daines (Mont.), John Kennedy (La.) and Marsha Blackburn (Tenn.) is undermining the electoral process by vowing to vote against accepting the election results until there is a 10-day audit.

Congress will meet for a joint session on Wednesday to certify the Electoral College tally, which found President-elect Joe Biden the victor of the White House race.

“Joe Biden will be inaugurated on January 20th, and no publicity stunt will change that,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) said in a statement issued Saturday.

“For a group of my Republican colleagues to claim that they want an additional federal ‘commission’ to supersede state certifications when the votes have already been counted, recounted, litigated, and state-certified, amounts to nothing more than an attempt to subvert the will of the voters,” she added.

“This pathetic, opportunistic stunt is an attack on our democracy. It’s un-American & unconscionable. Votes have been counted, recounted, certified, & all challenges totally discredited. Time to govern & get things done,” added Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.).

This pathetic, opportunistic stunt is an attack on our democracy. It’s un-American & unconscionable. Votes have been counted, recounted, certified, & all challenges totally discredited. Time to govern & get things done. https://t.co/PVvK0A1n01

— Richard Blumenthal (@SenBlumenthal) January 2, 2021

The rebukes are targeted at the GOP senators who announced Saturday that they would reject the Electoral College results so a panel could investigate allegations of voter fraud.

President Trump’s campaign and Republican allies have stated numerous times that the 2020 election was tainted by widespread voter fraud. However, U.S. election officials as well as former Attorney General William Barr have stated that there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud.

Following the 2020 election, the president’s campaign and some GOP lawmakers launched legal battles in several battleground states, but the majority of them have been unsuccessful.

“Congress should immediately appoint an Electoral Commission, with full investigatory and fact-finding authority, to conduct an emergency 10-day audit of the election returns in the disputed states,” the GOP senators said. “Once completed, individual states would evaluate the Commission’s findings and could convene a special legislative session to certify a change in their vote, if needed.”

The 11 senators and senators-elect will join Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who has already said he will object to the Electoral College results because of concerns around allegations of voter fraud.

The challenge is almost guaranteed to fail in the Democratic-controlled House and in the Senate, where 48 Democrats and several Republicans are anticipated to come out against these efforts.

Still, Democrats accused their GOP counterparts of attempting to undermine the democratic process.

“‘I did sedition because I was up for re-election’ is a helluva thing to explain to your grandkids,” tweeted Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).

“I did sedition because I was up for re-election” is a helluva thing to explain to your grandkids.

— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) January 2, 2021

“It is a sad and tragic day for our country that 140 members of the House of Representatives, 13 senators and a defeated president are attempting to undermine American democracy and our Constitution,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) added. “They will not succeed.”

It is a sad and tragic day for our country that 140 members of the House of Representatives, 13 senators and a defeated president are attempting to undermine American democracy and our Constitution.

They will not succeed.

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) January 2, 2021

Members of Republican leadership such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Senate Majority Whip John Thune (S.D.) have urged their colleagues to refrain from challenging the Electoral College results.

Following the news from his Republican colleagues, Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer tweeted, “Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be President and Vice President of the United States in 18 days.”