House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) on Sunday repeatedly avoided saying whether he believes the 2020 presidential election was “stolen” after Fox News’s Chris Wallace pressed him on the matter.
Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” Scalise blasted the Biden administration’s handling of the economy, the COVID-19 pandemic and the two major bills that have stalled in Congress.
After Scalise’s numerous condemnations of the White House, Wallace specifically asked the GOP leader if he believed the 2020 election was stolen from former President Trump and whether such claims undermine American democracy.
“Well, Chris, I’ve been very clear from the beginning. If you look at a number of states, they didn’t follow their state-passed laws that govern the election for president. That is what the United States Constitution says. They don’t say that the states determine what the rules are. They say the state legislature determined that,” said Scalise.
When Wallace took that to mean that the GOP leader believed the election was stolen, Scalise did not refute him but repeated his remarks on state legislative rules and what the Constitution states, refusing to agree or disagree with claims of a stolen election.
Scalise also declined to say how he would vote if former Trump advisers resisted subpoenas from Congress to speak to the Jan. 6 Capitol select committee. Last week, it was reported that Trump had advised four former aides to resist subpoenas from the panel.
“These are legal issues, and you’ve got a number of people that have been subpoenaed that are complying. They’re trying to comply, but it’s it’s a legal process,” Scalise said.
Wallace repeated his question to Scalise, who said, “Well, I don’t speculate on a bill that’s not before me.”