'Language Used by Demagogues': Sanders Rips Trump Over False Claim That He Can Only Lose If Election Is Rigged

Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday slammed President Donald Trump's latest attempt to preemptively cast doubt on the results of the November election as "language used by demagogues" and predicted that Trump will be denied a second term because of his destructive conduct in office, not "non-existent voter fraud."

"He's going to lose because the American people are sick and tired of his pathological lies, his rejection of science, his racism and his sexism," the Vermont senator wrote in a Facebook post.

Sanders' comments came after Trump declared during a campaign speech in Oshkosh, Wisconsin Monday that "the only way we're going to lose this election is if the election is rigged."

The president repeated that sentiment during a press briefing Tuesday, claiming without evidence that state expansions of mail-in voting due to the coronavirus pandemic could cause a "rigged election." Trump proceeded to float the possibility of an election redo, which has never occurred in U.S. history.

"They will never come out with an outcome. They'll have to do it again," Trump said. "And nobody wants that, and I don't want that."

As Common Dreams previously reported, progressive advocacy groups are preparing to mobilize millions of people across the U.S. should Trump lose in November and refuse to accept the results.

On Wednesday, Stand Up America—one of the groups involved in the mobilization effort—launched a separate initiative aimed at driving voter turnout in key battleground states.

"While Trump tries to undermine the election and suppress the vote in the middle of a pandemic, we'll refute his baseless lies about voter fraud and mobilize Americans to vote early, either in person or by mail," Sean Eldridge, founder and president of Stand Up America, said in a statement. "By reaching millions of voters in battleground states like Arizona, Florida, and Wisconsin, the Stand Up America community will help ensure that Trump is a one-term president."