GOP Lawmakers Don’t Back Trump’s Call For Election Delay

TOPLINE

Republican lawmakers nearly universally opposed President Donald Trump’s  suggestion Thursday that the November election should be delayed—something only Congress, not the president, has the power to do—suggesting Trump’s controversial idea is unlikely to actually be put into effect by his congressional allies.

KEY FACTS

Chief Critic

Democrats have similarly been universally opposed to Trump’s suggestion to delay the election, with congressional leaders Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Chuck Schumer pointing out that the decision is not Trump’s to make. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), who chairs the Committee on House Administration that oversees elections, said in a statement that “under no circumstances” will Congress consider moving the election date “to accommodate the President’s inept and haphazard response to the coronavirus pandemic,” and Federal Elections Commissioner Ellen Weintraub has also publicly condemned Trump’s tweet.

Key Background

Trump’s suggestion to delay the election confirmed fears by Trump critics that the president could try to somehow interfere with or delay the November election, after he repeatedly attacked the practice of mail-in voting and falsely claimed the election will be “rigged.” “Mark my words, I think he is going to try to kick back the election somehow, come up with some rationale why it can’t be held,” presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden said in April. The Trump campaign, however, has attempted to somewhat walk back the president’s controversial comments in the wake of his Thursday tweet, with press secretary Hogan Gidley saying in a statement to ABC News that the president was “just raising a question about the chaos Democrats have created with their insistence on all mail-in voting.” While GOP lawmakers have been willing to vocally oppose the president’s call for a delay, his administration officials have been more evasive in their response: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at a congressional hearing Thursday that “the Department of Justice and others will make that legal determination,” after U.S. Attorney General William Barr demurred and refused to speculate Tuesday when asked during a congressional hearing whether the president could delay an election.

Surprising Fact

If Trump does somehow delay the election, Trump and Vice President Mike Pence must still leave office at noon on January 20 as mandated by the 20th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. If there isn’t a clear successor in place at that point, the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 dictates that as Speaker of the House (assuming Democrats retain control), Pelosi would then be sworn in as president.

Further Reading

Trump Suggests Postponing Election—Which He Doesn’t Have The Power To Do—Citing Unsubstantiated Mail-In Ballot Fraud (Forbes)