Trump calls lost ‘by a whisker’ comment sarcasm – Washington Examiner
Former President Donald Trump reaffirmed his claims regarding the 2020 election being stolen during a recent presidential debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, despite having previously stated he lost “by a whisker.” In the weeks leading up to the debate, he acknowledged his defeat by President Joe Biden but insisted that his comments were made sarcastically, claiming there is substantial evidence to support his allegations of widespread voter fraud. While Trump has made some admissions of loss, including to the conservative group Moms for Liberty, his rhetoric continues to provoke backlash from his far-right supporters, who feel such statements undermine their efforts to contest the election results. During the debate, Trump expressed frustration that his legal challenges were dismissed in court on what he labeled as technicalities, highlighting the ongoing division over the election’s legitimacy among his base.
Trump revives stolen election claims, calls lost ‘by a whisker’ comment sarcasm
Former President Donald Trump returned to his stolen election claims during Tuesday night’s presidential debate despite his recent statements that he lost the 2020 election “by a whisker.”
In the weeks leading up to the first and likely only match-up against Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump conceded he lost against President Joe Biden, but he denied his remarks were a reversal in Philadelphia.
“I would say it sarcastically. There’s so much proof,” Trump responded. “All you have to do is look at it, and they should have sent it back to the legislatures for approval.”
2024 PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE LIVE UPDATES: TRUMP AND HARRIS FACE OFF IN ABC SHOWDOWN
Last month, Trump said during a conversation with the conservative Moms for Liberty group that he lost in 2020 “by a whisker.” He made a similar statement last week to podcaster Lex Fridman.
The remarks have amounted to his most direct acceptances of defeat, despite years of unsubstantiated claims he lost due to widespread voter fraud and Democratic cheating.
Trump and his allies in the wake of the 2020 election lost dozens of court cases throughout the country as part of their effort to challenge the results. He blamed those outcomes on biased judges, some of whom he appointed.
“They said we didn’t have standing — a technicality,” Trump said at the debate. “Can you imagine a system where a person in an election doesn’t have standing? The president of the United States doesn’t have standing?”
Trump’s statement that he lost “by a whisker” has prompted backlash from far-right supporters who argued such comments undermined their 2020 efforts to overturn the results.
“So, why did we do Stop the Steal? Why did anyone go to Jan. 6? Why did anyone go to jail?” hard-right political commentator Nick Fuentes, who participated in the U.S. Capitol attack, recently said on his podcast. “It would have been good to know that before 1,600 people got charged. It would’ve been good to know that before I had all my money frozen, put on a no-fly list, banned from everything, [and] lost all my bank and payment processing.”
Still, Trump has continued to claim Democrats are actively plotting to steal the November election and sought to sow doubt in the integrity of the results. He recently went so far as to threaten the prosecution of election officials, which GOP allies have chalked up to tough rhetoric advocating for the upholding of voting laws.
At the debate, Trump appeared to claim, without evidence, that illegal immigration was responsible for widespread voter fraud.
“A lot of these illegal immigrants coming in, [Democrats are] trying to get them to vote,” he said. “They can’t even speak English. They don’t even know what country they’re in, practically, and these people are trying to get them to vote, and that’s why they’re allowing them to come into our country.”
" Conservative News Daily does not always share or support the views and opinions expressed here; they are just those of the writer."
