Hmmmmm?
Cotton is one the guys mentioned prominently as eyeing a 2024 Republican Presidential run…And with this turns on others as the Republican 20214 Presidential race begins….
He is saying that Congress just counts what is given to it….
Smart move by him in looking forward to where he could be four years from now, eh?
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), a possible contender for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024, broke with his rivals Sunday night by announcing he will not object to the counting of electoral votes on Jan. 6.
Cotton warned that an effort spearheaded by Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas), two other 2024 White House hopefuls, to challenge the electoral votes of several swing states that went for President-elect Joe Biden could “establish unwise precedents.”
While Cotton said he is concerned about how the 2020 presidential election was carried out, such as changes to election law allowing mail-in ballots arriving after Election Day to be counted, he argued it is up to the states and the courts — not Congress — to handle election laws…
…
Cotton warned that if Congress threw out the electoral votes of states such as Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, where President Trump has alleged without evidence widespread election fraud, it would “take away the power to choose the president from the people.”
He said it would imperil the Electoral College and the voice it gives to smaller states like Arkansas and help Democrats “achieve their longstanding goal of eliminating the Electoral College.”
He said if Congress overrides the Electoral College’s vote, it would “take another big step toward federalizing election law.”
“Thus, I will not oppose the counting of certified electoral votes on Jan. 6,” he said….
Update*….
President Trump on Monday targeted Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) a day after the senator said he would not join an effort to object to the certification of Electoral College votes affirming Joe Biden as the next president.
“How can you certify an election when the numbers being certified are verifiably WRONG,” Trump tweeted, suggesting he would falsely claim during his rally in Georgia on Monday night that he was a true winner of the election despite multiple audits and court cases confirming Biden had won and that Trump claims lacked standing.
“@SenTomCotton Republicans have pluses & minuses, but one thing is sure, THEY NEVER FORGET!” Trump added….
image….talkbusiness.com
Why would you think this is a “smart move?”
Around 70% of Republicans think Bidens election was ”illegitimate.”
Likely ,they favor Hawley and Cruzs moves
Those are the people who will be voting in Republican primaries.
Cotton IS backing away from something thst he could be involved in 4 years from now…
What don’t u get?
Non responsive?
I asked you how it was a smart move as 70% of Republicans believe that Biden is “illegitimate.I know you have a problem with word comprehension.
But you see that indicates that most Republicans agree with what Cruz is doing.
I don’t see it as a “smart move.”
“smart” in terms of a general election perhaps? “smart” in terms of having the “70%” divided up in a primary and beating them that way?
It can mean several things and obviously should be clear to any political junkie.
I assume Cotton, who has bravely served his country, for whatever political faults he has, does indeed have a conscience and an understanding of the Constitution.
The vast majority of Senate Republicans will vote as he will.
The House Republicans will include among them many gutless wonders, who know what they are doing is pointless and wrong, and do not truly want it to succeed, but feel they have to show loyalty to Trump or reap the primary whirlwind.
Yeah that’s what James meant I’m sure.
That 70% may be fractured ,but then again so may the other 30% .There will likely be several others running who share Cottons outlook.However,despite this vote,I expect the Cotton to runnng closer in view to Hawley and Cruz than say Larry Hogan.
“Smart?”Eh.
By the time the next primaries roll around, I doubt many people will be focused on this one way or another. Trump as a topic is going to gradually dissipate. I know you hope that is wrong, and I do not blame you.
No,I doubt it will be a major issue, more like a peripheral one.
For example, I can see Ted Cruz ,at a primary debate ,throwing out there that he stood up to those “liberals who were trying to steal the presidency ,” or a similiar type remark, while Cotton ,”sat on the sidelines,”to cheers from the MAGA hat wearers, whose hat may be a different color by then.
I still think there is no way Cruz runs for President. He made his bed and laid in it just to make sure he was re-nominated to the Senate for another term. He has grown and kept the beard.
Even the ardent Trump supporters look at him as a de-masculated laughing stock.
I just updated the this post with Trump’s response to Cotton going rogue on the Big Guy….
Thanks Jack…..
Yes….
Not all of the GOPer’s are in line with the Senate crew…
35 or so Republicans want no part of the ‘stunt’ right now including most of all McConnell…
We’ll see what the numbers are on Wednesday….
Cotton must be betting that the rank and file GOP will come to their senses and be somewhat ashamed of this blatant attempt by Trump, Hawley, Cruz etc to overturn the election.
I hope he’s right. But if he’s not the GOP needs to be completely destroyed as a political party.
Voting Republican for any office should be seen aa practically waving a Confederate flag or using the N word.
I see nothing presently to suggest he is right.
Perdue ,for instance, a likely winner in Ga ,stands solidly behind Trump and blasted Raffensperger for taping the gangster.
You need a cold shower
Scott, that is.
If you want your party back, this is the way.
No, what you are suggesting is a desire for a one party government, which is not a good thing for a democracy.
By all means, if you want to advocate for the defeat of *any* Republican who does this, go ahead, but when you start saying *all* Republicans, for any office, coast to coast, some of whom did not even vote for Trump, that gets overboard.
The bit about the Confederate Flag and the N word was also a bit much, but I will restrain myself from saying more.
Where did I say I wanted “one party government”?
If the GOP is destroyed a new party would take it’s place. Sure as the sun comes up in the East.
As for “a bit much”–I’d say wanting a party where 70% of it’s voters refuse to accept the results of an election to continue in it’s current form is a “bit much”.
Who would make up the “new party?” Former Republicans mostly. Former Trump supporters. As someone who may one day really want a “new party”, I am certainly aware of that certainty. Just think about things a bit more before going off the rhetorical rails.
And a privileged white male who has not faced the prejudice and discrimination that many minority groups have had to and do face in the U.S. should be a bit more careful in ascribing what they consider akin to the Confederate Flag and the “n word.”
I made a comment on another party a few days ago.
I believe that the two party system is too institutionalized in the United Sates to support a major third party.Having said that,and speaking theoretically, an argument could be made that there is room for a centristparty made up of people like Romney,Collins,Murkowski,Hogan Baker, Bel Edwards Manchin ,maybe Roy Cooper and a host of lesser known mainly southern Democrats.
Still such is probably just that, theoretical.
To your point Jack, I think the money factor is the biggest issue for a third party…they would have to gain legitimacy with voters before they get the financial backing needed to make a major campaign run (unless it went self funded by say a Bloomberg)…and even then his self funded campaign of a billion dollars got him maybe 20 percent in one state…I do think that if we had more parties we would get more things done because with no one in the majority like a McConnell more compromise would be a necessity…as it stands now you can do nothing and still win a congressional election (Republicans in Senate 2020, 2018, 2016, 2014, etc)
The Folly of the Cruz Eleven
By The Editors of National Review
January 3, 2021 8:01 PM
https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/the-folly-of-the-cruz-eleven/
I tend to agree with this take from National Review about the whole thing .Of course, that does not make what is happening remotely right, but this is kabuki theater above all else:
https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/this-is-not-a-coup-just-a-very-cynical-fraud/?utm_source=recirc-desktop&utm_medium=blog-post&utm_campaign=river&utm_content=more-in&utm_term=first
CG?
I’ve been saying this IS a ‘stunt’ here for a while….
The analogy just occurred to me, not that this makes it right, that the Republicans who will go through with this charade on Wednesday, are doing the political equivalent of giving a dying kid his “Make A Wish” fantasy day.
Trump is in his final days as President and they have decided to just go through the motions and humor him so they can tell him and his die-hards that they did “what they could.” By their next election, they figured Americans will have moved on to something else, and may very well be right.
Yet, progressively, our standards as a society continue diminish.
Maybe they should offer to get him a big fancy general uniform with lots of shiny gold medals and just drive him on top of a tank down Pennsylvania Avenue to a cheering crowd instead.
But that’s probably already planned for 1/19.
This isn’t REALLY about Trump….
It’s about his supporters ….
Trump has just 2 weeks….
His supporters will vote again in 2 years…
It’s about Trump who the thinking by them is “controls” his supporters. It’s doing everything possible to avoid a Tweet endorsing a primary challenger, third party opponent, whatever.
Still, most Republican Senators and I guess at least a third of Republican House members are going to be willing to risk it. Graham and Lee are apparently a no, and Trump is attacking them from the podium for it as they stand among the very MAGA throng.
I said Graham would change directions in the end…
He ALWAYS DOES….
He’ll buddy up to Biden come next month….
Not really. Biden can’t help him win the next SC primary.
It was sort of weird though for Graham and Lee to show up tonight in Georgia though. Trump attacked Cotton on Twitter and it seemed tougher than the way he attacked Graham and Lee from the podium.
Graham ALWAYS finds a way to win
Despite all the doomsday stuff always floating around Graham?
He always wins fairly handily.
SC remains a rock solid Republican state despite insinuations to the contrary.
Yeah Georgia and North Carolina are purple now because while they are southern states they both have major metro areas.
South Carolina’s largest metro area is a fraction of the size of Atlanta or Charlotte
Graham has never been really challenged in a Republican primary.
Instead, his challengers are generally “ wanna bes.”
No big name Republican has ever stepped forward to give him a run.
You gonna beat Graham ? It’s in the primary.2020 showed that even a Democrat running with a substantial war chest and major national backing can’t even come close.
The hypocrisy of Ted Cruz is Stunning. If given the chance, that power-hungry Republican would be more authoritarian than Trump, and more effective at it.
Trump is providing the roadmap to the current Republicans on how to end Democracy. and the Republican base is more than ready for it.