President Donald Trump never admits defeat. But he faces a tough choice now that Democrat Joe Biden has won the White House: to graciously concede for the good of the nation or not, and be evicted anyway.
After nearly four torturous counting days that yielded a victory for Biden, Trump continued to insist that the race was not over. He made unsubstantiated accusations that the elections were unfair and that “illegal” votes were counted, promised a series of legal actions and released tweets in capital letters falsely insisting that “HE WON THIS ELECTION, BY FAR.”
While some in his circle pushed Trump to kindly concede, many of his Republican allies, including on Capitol Hill, were goading him or giving him room to process his loss, at least for the moment.
“Trump has not lost,” declared South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham in an appearance on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” rejecting the reality of the situation. “Don’t concede, Mr. President.” Fight hard, ”he urged.
Trump is not expected to formally relent, according to people close to him, but he is likely to reluctantly leave the White House at the end of his term. His continued efforts to paint the elections as unfair are seen as both an effort to calm a wounded ego and to show his loyal fan base that he is still fighting. That could be key to keeping them energized for what comes next.
“He intends to fight,” Trump’s economic adviser Larry Kudlow said when it became clear that the president was heading for defeat.
Would Trump ever concede? “I doubt it,” said Roger Stone, Trump’s longtime friend and adviser, whose prison sentence was commuted by Trump in July. Stone claimed that Biden, as a result, will have “a cloud over his presidency with half the people in the country believing he was illegitimately elected.”
The allies suggested that if Trump wants to launch a media empire in the next few years, he has an incentive to prolong the drama. So, too, if you intend to keep the door open to a possible comeback in 2024, it would be only a year older than Biden now.
Others in his inner circle were goading him, including his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani. The former New York mayor has promised to provide the president with evidence of voter fraud, but has produced little, including during a press conference he held Saturday in the parking lot of a small Philadelphia landscaping company next to an adult bookstore.
Trump’s adult sons Donald Jr. and Eric also urged their father to keep fighting and challenged Republicans to support them, as well as allies in Congress like Graham.
“What I would say to President Trump is: don’t give up. My advice is not to give in, ”said Republican Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona in a podcast interview. “Let’s fight this thing. It’s too important to give up. “
Some in the president’s orbit have been nervously glancing toward the Capitol for signs of a Republican defection. But so far, most seemed to be giving it time.
“I hope the president takes care of this, however he has to,” Senator Roy Blunt of Missouri said on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. Still, he said it was time for Trump to “turn this discussion over to his lawyers, time for the lawyers to present the case they have, both in court and to the American people, and then we will have to deal with those facts as present. That has to happen and then we will move on. “
“At this point, we don’t know who has prevailed in the election,” said Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, telling Fox News that he believes Trump “still has a path to victory.”
However, other political allies and White House officials have pressed Trump to change his tune and commit to a smooth transition. They have emphasized to him that history will be a harsh judge of any action he takes that is deemed to undermine his successor. And he has been advised to deliver a speech next week pledging to support the transition.
Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner has told others that he is among those who have urged the president to accept the outcome of the contest, even if Trump does not accept how it was achieved.
On Fox News, where prime-time anchors wield enormous influence over Trump, Laura Ingraham expressed the president’s belief that the elections had been unfair, while pleading with him to consider his legacy and preserve his status as republican kingmaker – gracefully leaving office.
“The legacy of President Trump will only be more meaningful if he focuses on moving the country forward,” he said Thursday.
This story is based on interviews with more than a dozen Trump advisers and allies, many of whom spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal discussions.
That the peaceful transfer of power was even in doubt reflected the rule-breaking habits of the now lame president, who even in victory never admitted that he had lost the popular vote in 2016.
Most attendees believed that the president would take the weekend to decide on a plan, which will surely involve more legal action. But some aides believe that legal skirmishes have more to do with giving the appearance of a fight than producing results.
There were some indications that Trump was moving in a less controversial direction, even as he continued to complain angrily to his aides, reviving old complaints about the Russia investigation that began under President Barack Obama.
In a statement Friday, Trump suggested that he would use all avenues of the law to challenge the election result. But the Allies interpreted it as grudging recognition of the likely outcome.
“We will continue this process in all aspects of the law to ensure that the American people have confidence in our government,” Trump said. “I will never stop fighting for you and our nation.”
On Saturday, the White House added that the president “will accept the results of free and fair elections” and that the administration “is following all legal requirements.”
Still, there were concerns that Trump’s rhetoric would inflame tensions in a nation that was already bitterly divided before the election. Isolated skirmishes were reported near the tabulation centers in Philadelphia and Phoenix.
Pro-Trump protesters, some of them openly carrying rifles and pistols, have demonstrated in front of counting facilities in various cities across the country, responding to Trump’s unsubstantiated allegations that Democrats were trying to rob the White House.
Biden, meanwhile, has asked the country to join.
“For all of you who voted for President Trump, I understand the disappointment tonight. I’ve gotten lost a couple of times. But now, let’s give ourselves a chance, ”he said in his victory speech Saturday night.
Trump, whose voluminous Twitter account seems to provide a suitable entry for any occasion, offered this advice in 2016: “Vladimir Putin said today about Hillary and Dems:“ In my opinion, it is humiliating. One must be able to lose with dignity, “So true!”
.
