WASHINGTON D.C., DC — Sen. Lindsey Graham is questioning the reasoning of 11 of his fellow Republicans who plans to challenge the election results this week in Congress.
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and at least 11 other Republican senators and an unknown number of Republican representatives have committed to challenging the Electoral College's certification of the 2020 presidential election on Wednesday, Jan. 6. They also want to form an emergency commission to look into the still unproven claims of widespread voter fraud.
Graham issued a statement Sunday afternoon on the Cruz proposal to establish an electoral commission.
“Proposing a commission at this late date – which has zero chance of becoming reality – is not effectively fighting for President Trump. It appears to be more of a political dodge than an effective remedy.
“I do look forward to hearing from and will listen closely to the objections of my colleagues in challenging the results of this election.
“They will need to provide proof of the charges they are making. They will also need to provide clear and convincing evidence that the failure to act – in both the state and federal courts and the states legislatures which investigated these claims – was made in error. They will also need to show that the failure to take corrective action in addressing election fraud changed the outcome of these states’ votes and ultimately the outcome of the election.
“My colleagues will have the opportunity to make this case, and I will listen closely. But they have a high bar to clear.”
Late last week, South Carolina representatives Joe Wilson, Ralph Norman, and Jeff Duncan joined Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley's announcement that he will formally object to the Electoral College's certification of the election. About 140 Republicans in the House are planning to challenge the results.
Under the U.S. Constitution, Congress certifies the winner of the Electoral College. Ordinarily, this is essentially a rubber stamp to the Electoral College vote, which happened back on December 14. That showed Biden defeating President Donald Trump 306-232, the same number seen after votes were certified in all 50 states weeks earlier.
However, if at least one member in either chamber objects, each chamber must debate and taken a vote.
President-elect Joe Biden is set to be sworn in on January 20.
Trump has made false claims about voter fraud and he and his allies have filed approximately 50 lawsuits challenging the election results. Nearly all of those lawsuits have been dismissed or dropped -- and Trump has lost cases twice at the US Supreme Court.