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4 Nov, 7 tweets, 2 min read
Back in September, I laid out in this piece how Donald Trump's attacks on mail-in ballots were a precursor to him trying to stop them from being counted. This is what we're seeing today.
independent.co.uk/news/world/ame…
This whole mess could have been avoided if Republicans in Pennsylvania allowed mail-in ballots to be processed before election day. They refused because mail-in ballots were disproportionately used by Democrats, and the uncertainty benefited them.
We did a podcast on this slow-motion car crash last week btw.
But the big story here isn't that this was a close race, it's that the president of the United States is trying to declare victory in an election before all the votes are counted because he has a temporary lead. That's unprecedented, incredibly dangerous and authoritarian.
And it's important to remember that Trump began his completely unsubstantiated attacks on mail-in ballots only when it became clear that Democrats would use them disproportionately due to the pandemic. He had no problem with them before.
Final thing: Back in October, I wrote a preview of how the count in Pennsylvania could decide the election, and how the state was preparing.
independent.co.uk/news/world/ame…
The delays were intentional.

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More from @_RichardHall

Richard Hall Profile picture
4 Nov
Small crowd of Trump supporters outside the Pennsylvania convention Centre, where PA’s remaining votes are being counted. Rudy Giuliani and team on the way here.
Giuliani and the gang have now cancelled their press conference outside the convention centre. Crowd mostly disbanded. Benny Hill theme plays.
The gang have now rearranged their press conference at the airport after unilaterally declaring victory before the ballots have been counted. Heading there now.
Read 10 tweets
Richard Hall Profile picture
4 Nov
Pennsylvania @GovernorTomWolf talking now: "The promise of democracy is that every vote counts. That has been the promise of democracy since 1787. They will be counted accurately and fully.”
"Delay is a sign that the system is working. There are 3 million mail-in ballots that are being counted. We may not know the results even today. The most important thing is that we have accurate results."
"Make no mistake: our democracy is being tested in this election. This is a stress test of the ideals on which this country was founded. The basic rule of one person, one vote, still carries."
Read 4 tweets
Richard Hall Profile picture
3 Nov
CNN: What we are about to tell you means nothing. We have barely any results. Please do not jump to conclusions.

Also CNN: Listen to me talk about that same thing for ten minutes.
⬇️
CNN is blasting meaningless graphics and maps into people’s faces like so many custard pies.
Read 4 tweets
Richard Hall Profile picture
3 Nov
Sharing some election dispatches ICYMI. Most were an attempt to explain shifts in the polls since 2016 (i.e. not repeatedly asking Trump's supporters why they still loved him). Others looked at election issues/suppression.

First up Kenosha, Wisconsin: independent.co.uk/news/world/ame…
Johnstown, Pennsylvania:

independent.co.uk/news/world/ame…
The Trump admin's attacks on the postal service:

independent.co.uk/news/world/ame…
Read 11 tweets
Richard Hall Profile picture
21 Aug
Exclusive: Carter Centre to launch first-ever US election initiative, citing "erosion" of democracy in the country.

The organisation, founded by Carter, monitors elections in hotspots around the world. This is the first time it has worked in the US.

independent.co.uk/news/world/ame…
This is kind of a big deal. It comes just days after Barack Obama issued a stark warning on the threat the Trump administration poses to democracy in the US.

Two former presidents now raising the alarm just a few months away from the election.
In the past, it has prioritised countries where there is “a significant potential for an important change in the quality of democracy,” or where democracy is “under severe threat”.

But the Cater Centre now believes "the state of democracy in the US has been eroding.”
Read 4 tweets
Richard Hall Profile picture
25 May
Will Trump destroy opposition research or will it destroy him? I spoke to folks in the business of digging up dirt about how opposition research has changed in the age of Trump.
independent.co.uk/independentpre…
This, from a researcher who worked on Obama, Clinton and Sanders' campaigns, sums it up well:
And this, from Alan Huffman — who wrote the book on opposition research — on how November is a test for the truth and the usefulness of this kind of work:
Read 5 tweets

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