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US President Donald Trump appeared to acknowledge for the first time that Joe Biden won the White House, but made it clear that he would not budge and would continue to try to reverse the election result.
Trump’s remarks came in tweets that included several unsubstantiated claims about the Nov. 3 presidential vote, which state and federal officials say was safe.
The president tweeted that he “won,” something he had not said publicly before, though he said the Democrat’s victory was only “in the eyes” of the media.
Biden defeated his rival by recapturing a trio of Midwestern battle states – Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania – and surpassed the threshold of 270 electoral votes for the presidency.
So far, Biden has 77.5 million votes, the most ever for a winning candidate, compared to 72.3 million for Trump.
The president has previously refused to accept the election results and insisted again on Sunday, saying, “I grant NOTHING! We have a long way to go. “
Even though he apparently acknowledged Biden’s victory, he also argued without evidence that the former vice president only won because the election was “rigged.”
He only won in the eyes of the FAKE NEWS MEDIA. I grant NOTHING! We have a long way to go. This was an EQUIPPED CHOICE!
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)
November 15, 2020
Then Trump made unsubstantiated complaints about election observer access and vote tabulations, stating “WE WILL WIN!” Twitter soon posted warning labels on tweets.
Election officials from both political parties have publicly stated that the elections went well and international observers confirmed that there were no serious irregularities.
The Trump campaign has tried to raise legal challenges across the country, but many have been dismissed and none have included evidence that the outcome can be reversed.
More than a week after Election Day, Trump has not called Biden or made a formal concession, and White House officials have insisted they are preparing for a second term.
In recent days, Trump seemed to come closer and closer to acknowledging the reality of his loss.
In comments at the Rose Garden about a coronavirus vaccine on Friday, Trump said his administration “will not go into a lockdown” to slow the spread of Covid-19, adding that “whatever happens in the future, who knows what management is it? I guess time will tell. “
On Sunday, Trump also renewed his baseless attacks on election technology company Dominion Voting Systems, with no evidence of serious wrongdoing.
Dominion has said that it “denies the claims about any vote changes or alleged software problems with our voting systems.”
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, a federal agency that oversees electoral security, said in a statement last week that “the November 3 elections were the safest in US history.”
The agency said: “There is no evidence that any voting system has removed or lost votes, changed votes or been compromised in any way.”
In his latest fundraising email, Trump told his followers that “we are fighting to ensure ALL LEGAL VOTES are counted” and that he had “legal teams on the ground in all critical states.” – AP
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