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WASHINGTON: The top Republican in the United States Congress on Monday (November 9) said that President Donald Trump was within his right to investigate charges of “wrongdoing” in last week’s election, which was called for the Democrat Joe Biden, but did not offer any evidence of fraud.
Trump, a Republican, has yet to concede defeat two days after Biden garnered enough Electoral College votes state-by-state to win. On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he supported Trump’s launch of a legal fight over allegations of voter fraud.
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“President Trump has 100% of his right to investigate allegations of wrongdoing and weigh his legal options,” McConnell said. Before addressing the Senate, McConnell met privately with Attorney General William Barr.
Only a handful of Senate Republicans have congratulated Biden on his victory. One of them, Senator Susan Collins, told reporters Monday night that she thought the president’s legal challenges are unlikely to change the outcome of the election.
But most Republican lawmakers have said the president’s demands should be allowed to unfold or have avoided public comment on the election results.
Trump said months before the Nov. 3 vote that he could only lose if fraudulent votes were cast. Experts say there is no evidence of significant fraud in the US elections.
In a Senate speech, McConnell did not recognize Biden as president-elect or his running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris, as vice president-elect. The Republican also attacked the media that called for Biden’s election, saying that “the Constitution does not grant any role in this process to wealthy media corporations.”
“Let’s not have conferences,” McConnell continued.
“There are no sermons on how the president should immediately and joyfully accept the preliminary election results from the same characters who have just spent four years refusing to accept the validity of the last one.”
Biden surpassed the threshold of 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the presidency on Saturday after four days of scrutiny. Biden leads in two of the four states that have yet to be summoned, and is ahead with more than 4.4 million votes in the popular vote.
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Earlier Monday, Collins and another Republican senator, Ben Sasse, congratulated Biden, and Collins emphasized the importance of the transition that ensures the new administration is ready to rule on Inauguration Day on January 20.
“He loves this country and I wish him every success,” Collins said of Biden in a statement. Collins, who won re-election last week, also said Trump should have a chance to challenge the election results.
Sasse, from Nebraska, made a congratulatory statement that was published in the Omaha World-Herald.
“Today in our home we pray for President Trump and President-elect Biden, that they will both be prudent in carrying out their respective duties during this important time in our nation,” said Sasse, who has been a critic of Trump.
Over the weekend, two other Republican senators, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah, a former presidential candidate, congratulated Biden.
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Some Republican lawmakers, like Senator Lindsey Graham, have urged Trump to keep fighting. Graham told reporters Monday that if Trump loses his legal challenges, he would “encourage him to at least think about running again” in 2024.
But Republican Senator John Cornyn told reporters that while he was not mad at the president using the legal process, “in the end, they will have to present some facts and evidence.” Cornyn won reelection in Texas last week.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said he was encouraged to see some Republicans congratulate the winning candidate.
“But many, including the Republican leader, have been silent or have sympathized with the fantasies of the president,” he said in the Senate.
