Trump knows he probably won’t get enough votes to win, so his plan is evidently to create chaos with the postal service so that the election will be a disaster, and then use the excuse of the chaos to try to delegitimize the election.
They possess the capacity to lie and destroy. That’s about it.
Also, (2) Trump announced it.
washingtonpost.com/politics/trump…
(Also known as absentee voting. I deliberately use the terms interchangeably. Trump doesn't seem to understand the difference.)
He then evidently decided that the best way to sabotage vote by mail is to cripple the Post Office.
Also the post office helps people, and helping people goes against the GOP philosophy of government.
For info on the postal power in the Constitution, see: law.cornell.edu/constitution-c…
Yes, I know. The president of the United States actually admitted that he's trying to sabotage an election. 😡
And here we are.
On the bright side, if he knew he had it rigged, he wouldn't try to sabotage it.
For people who have the opportunity to vote by mail:
🔹Get your ballot as soon as possible.
🔹Strategize the best way to submit your ballot.
The mails will get jammed and people won’t get their ballots. They'll have to go to the polls and cancel their absentee ballot, lengthening the lines and creating Election Day chaos.
Make sure everyone you know does the same.
After you fill out your ballot, strategize the the best way to submit it.
In some states, you can take it to a polling place during early voting or on Election Day.
In other words: Avoid the mail. Makes sense, right?
Become a community organizer or join a voter protection group and get the word out that people need to avoid the mail.
Small businesses are already hurting.
Remember what happened to the Wisconsin GOP when they tried to win an election by creating pain for voters?
⤵️
Creating chaos has always worked for Trump. He literally has no other "skills." His method of "governing" is what @TimothyDSnyder calls crisis and spectacle.
How? So glad you asked.
I don't think the goal is to delay ballots: The goal is to create massive chaos and disaster, and then use that chaos to delegitimize the election.
Next I'll talk about how to deal with Trump's attempt to delegitimize the election.
These problems seem huge when Trump throws them out, but we're smarter than he is and tougher than he is.
Kamala Harris (our future vice president 🎉) was asked the best way to combat this administration's voter suppression.
She said: "I look at it as a challenge" and said we're strong enough to get around it.
This is why my advice is (1) get your ballot as soon as possible and (2) strategize the best way to submit it.
CA allows people to drop them at polling places on election day.
Drop boxes are specifically for ballots. They are owned by the state or county and are part of the election apparatus. The post office has nothing to do with them.
Mail boxes are owned by the post office.
In GA, there are strict rules governing the placement of these boxes. They must be somewhere with a camera at all times (like inside a court house).
Democracy means rule by the people.
The people are us.
Democracy takes work. Autocracy (taking orders) is for the lazy.
Rant over.
I take mine to the county clerk's office. (Again, check with your secretary of state to find out your local rules.)
The clerk makes sure there are no issues with the ballot.
A difference right now is that whites are the targets of voter suppression. Blacks have had to endure it for most of history.
Think of the courage it took during some times and places to vote.
My understanding of how things work is that if you're worried about something, you get busy and find solutions.
Blacks were threatened with violence for trying to vote.
Yes, I'm worried. But melting down with panic doesn't help.
I do suspect Trump will back down from this as with the shutdown, but we need to plan.
For new followers, I'm a volunteer lawyer with the Georgia Voter Protection org. I'm also on the GA Voter Protection committee.
In past elections, I've worked in CA and NV.
See my to-do list for how you can get involved.
The better option is to prepare the population for the reality that most Democrats will be voting by mail, so the results will not be known election night.
People need to get over it.
Voting by mail is safer. The ballots are hand marked, paper, and were prepared carefully at home by the voter.
Prepare them now.
I meant that the people most likely to be harassed and put through hardships at the polls are Blacks and minorities.
(It's a sad fact.)