EXCELLENT: Not everyone agrees on Biden as “President Elect” – What Utah’s Members of Congress Have Said About the Presidential Election Results
[Great stuff to see a good portion of them saying that this is not over. Nice. Trump must fight on. Jan]
Democratic President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris were declared winners Saturday morning by the Associated Press and a slew of other major news outlets. President Donald Trump has refused to concede the race and has filed multiple lawsuits, citing unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud and irregularities. The Trump campaign and White House have thus far not presented evidence of fraud widespread enough to impact the results of the election.
Here’s how Utah’s mostly Republican congressional delegation is responding.
Sen. Mike Lee
Lee, Utah’s senior senator, has not recognized Biden as the next president. He said in a statement that both Biden and Trump have the right to pursue legal action.
“Voters on both sides of the political aisle understandably expect — and indeed deserve — to have a high level of confidence in the results of each election,” Lee said in a statement. “I look forward to working with whichever candidate emerges as the winner at the end of this process.”
Sen. Mitt Romney
Romney, Utah’s junior senator, congratulated Biden and Harris shortly after the race was called by major news outlets. He has said it’s very likely that Biden will be inaugurated Jan. 20, but court cases brought by the Trump administration regarding claims of voter fraud should be allowed to run their course. Romney said he has seen no evidence of voting irregularities large enough to impact the outcome of the election.
“It’s important for the cause of democracy and freedom that we don’t allege fraud and theft unless there’s very clear evidence of that. And at this stage, evidence hasn’t been produced,” he said in an interview with Fox News.
Rep. Rob Bishop
Bishop, who is retiring from Congress in January, has also not publicly recognized Biden as the president-elect. Bishop has not responded to a KUER request for comment, but he told The Salt Lake Tribune that it was not his place to take a position on whether the election has been decided and he doesn’t know enough about any alleged voting irregularities to speak with authority.
“Whether I speak out or not, that doesn’t make a difference,” he told the Tribune. “I should be doing things that make a difference.”
Rep. Chris Stewart
Stewart, who was just re-elected to represent Utah’s 3rd Congressional District, has not commented publicly on Trump’s refusal to concede. He has not responded to a KUER request for comment.
Rep. John Curtis
Curtis, who was also just re-elected to represent Utah’s 3rd Congressional District, said Monday that Biden needs to be recognized as president-elect, but the sitting president has the right to pursue legal action, mirroring Romney’s stance.
“Now is not the time to be sore winners and losers — now is the time to heal the wounds and come together as one United States,” Curtis said in a statement.
Rep. Ben McAdams
Utah’s lone Democrat McAdams, who is still waiting on the results of his competitive re-election bid, congratulated Biden and Harris Saturday night on their win, but did not comment on Trump’s refusal to concede or his lawsuits. He has not responded to a request for further comment.
“Now is the time to put people before party and come together to work in a bipartisan manner on issues that are important to Utah’s hard-working families,” McAdams tweeted.
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