Although reports suggest some congressional Republicans may be straying away from support of President Donald Trump, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. signaled that he will stand by the president when Congress convenes to count Electoral College votes next week.
“I cannot vote to certify the electoral college results on January 6 without raising the fact that some states, particularly Pennsylvania, failed to follow their own state election laws,” Hawley said in a statement Wednesday.
“And I cannot vote to certify without pointing out the unprecedented effort of mega corporations, including Facebook and Twitter, to interfere in this election, in support of Joe Biden,” he continued. “At the very least, Congress should investigate allegations of voter fraud and adopt measures to secure the integrity of our elections. But Congress has so far failed to act.”
Many Democrats and their media allies have, in fact, repeatedly insisted that there was no evidence of vote fraud during the Nov. 3 election—contrary to the mounds of evidence including expert forensic investigations, witness affidavits and video footage that others have reported on.
But as Hawley noted, Democrats themselves raised objections with far less evidentiary basis following George W. Bush’s 2004 re-election and Trump’s 2016 election.
On both occasions, “Democrats in Congress objected during the certification of electoral votes in order to raise concerns about election integrity,” Hawley noted.
“They were praised by Democratic leadership and the media when they did. And they were entitled to do so,” he added. “But now those of us concerned about the integrity of this election are entitled to do the same.”
Hawley cited, for instance, former Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., calling her 2005 objection to Ohio’s electors “her proudest moment on the Senate floor,” according to CNN.
Then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., offered high praise for the bravery of her fellow California liberal, along with Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Ohio, who brought it to the House floor.
“The Members of Congress who have brought this challenge are speaking up for their aggrieved constituents, many of whom may have been disenfranchised in this process,” Pelosi said.
“This is their only opportunity to have this debate while the country is listening, and it is appropriate to do so,” she continued. “If there were other venues of this caliber, we would have taken that opportunity. But this is the opportunity. We have a responsibility to take advantage of it.”
At least two other GOP senators—Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Sen.-elect Tommy Tuberville of Alabama—have indicated that they may also back the challenge.
It is being raised by several House members including Reps. Louie Gohmert of Texas and Mo Brooks of Alabama.
“With America’s Republic at stake, we are fortunate to have leaders like Senator Hawley stand up and do what is right to ensure America remains the greatest nation in world history,” Brooks said in a statement.
“… Congressmen and Senators will face an easy vote: you can either acquiesce to and support voter fraud and election theft, or you can stand and fight for an honest and accurate election system that is the underpinning of America’s Republic,” he continued. “On January 6, on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, I choose to fight!!!”
Gohmert also was leading the charge in a lawsuit that sought to grant Vice President Mike Pence the exclusive power for recognizing rival electors.
Although the 12th Amendment suggests that Pence, as president of the Senate, would oversee the process, subsequent legislation—passed in the aftermath of an 1876 electoral dispute commonly known as the “Corrupt Bargain”—sought to minimize Congress’s influence over the presidential selection process.
Pence reportedly rejected Gohmert’s request to back the effort.
