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Supporters of US President-elect Joe Biden gather near the Texas capitol building to celebrate his victory in the 2020 presidential election in Austin, Texas on November 7, 2020. - Democrat Joe Biden has won the White House, US media said November 7, defeating Donald Trump and ending a presidency that convulsed American politics, shocked the world and left the United States more divided than at any time in decades. (Photo: Sergio Flores/AFP via Getty Images)
Recognize What This Is: A Final Attempt of a Desperate, Bitter Man to Cling to Power
Why this effort to steal an election and corrupt democracy won't work.
Nov 09, 2020
Joe Biden has won. He will be our next president.
Normally, the loser of the race would give a gracious concession speech, and accept the results.
That won't happen this time around, because Donald Trump is a pathological narcissist who will never admit defeat. But there's no legal requirement for the losing candidate to formally concede--it's just another tradition Trump will choose to ignore.
He can bluster and protest all he wants, but like it or not, the Constitution and federal law establish a clear timeline of how electoral votes are processed, and when the new president takes office. Here's how that process normally plays out, how Trump might try to undermine it, and why he is unlikely to succeed.
The first date to look out for is December 8th. After Election Day, states have until this date, called the "safe harbor" deadline, to resolve any election disputes. Each state has a unique process outlined in its state constitution for this, and the federal deadline was created so that state electoral disputes don't drag on endlessly.
Next is December 14th. This is when the electors meet in their states, and cast paper ballots for president and vice president. And then governors certify the electors' votes.
The governor sends these certified results to Congress by December 23rd.
On January 6th, 2021, the newly sworn-in Congress meets in a joint session to officially accept each state's Electoral College votes and count them. This is normally a ceremonial event in which the already-settled results of the election are simply made official. This is when the presidential race formally ends.
Lastly, on January 20th, the president and vice president are inaugurated.
Normally, no one pays much attention to this process before Inauguration Day because it goes off without a hitch. But we've seen that Trump will do anything to hold onto power. It's important to know how and when he might try to undermine this process, and also understand how unlikely it is he'll succeed.
Trump backers are trying to push Republican-controlled state legislatures to appoint their own slates of Trump electors. That's why the campaign has launched empty legal challenges to perfectly normal vote counts--trying to sow enough doubt to give the state legislatures political cover to appoint their own electors.
This isn't likely to happen. It would be challenged as an unconstitutional power grab, since state legislatures have almost always deferred to the results of the state's popular vote in assigning electoral votes. And not to mention, it would spark massive public outrage.
Thankfully, it doesn't look like Republican legislators in any of the key swing states want to expend their political capital defending a failed president, and some have even explicitly come out against this plan.
All this is to say, be patient, keep the faith, and don't fall into Trump's cry for attention. We must see this for what it is: A final attempt of a desperate, bitter man to cling to power.
Joe Biden will be our next president.
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Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
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Robert Reich
Robert Reich is professor emeritus of public policy at Berkeley and former US secretary of labor. His latest book is the No. 1 New York Times best-seller, "Coming Up Short."
Joe Biden has won. He will be our next president.
Normally, the loser of the race would give a gracious concession speech, and accept the results.
That won't happen this time around, because Donald Trump is a pathological narcissist who will never admit defeat. But there's no legal requirement for the losing candidate to formally concede--it's just another tradition Trump will choose to ignore.
He can bluster and protest all he wants, but like it or not, the Constitution and federal law establish a clear timeline of how electoral votes are processed, and when the new president takes office. Here's how that process normally plays out, how Trump might try to undermine it, and why he is unlikely to succeed.
The first date to look out for is December 8th. After Election Day, states have until this date, called the "safe harbor" deadline, to resolve any election disputes. Each state has a unique process outlined in its state constitution for this, and the federal deadline was created so that state electoral disputes don't drag on endlessly.
Next is December 14th. This is when the electors meet in their states, and cast paper ballots for president and vice president. And then governors certify the electors' votes.
The governor sends these certified results to Congress by December 23rd.
On January 6th, 2021, the newly sworn-in Congress meets in a joint session to officially accept each state's Electoral College votes and count them. This is normally a ceremonial event in which the already-settled results of the election are simply made official. This is when the presidential race formally ends.
Lastly, on January 20th, the president and vice president are inaugurated.
Normally, no one pays much attention to this process before Inauguration Day because it goes off without a hitch. But we've seen that Trump will do anything to hold onto power. It's important to know how and when he might try to undermine this process, and also understand how unlikely it is he'll succeed.
Trump backers are trying to push Republican-controlled state legislatures to appoint their own slates of Trump electors. That's why the campaign has launched empty legal challenges to perfectly normal vote counts--trying to sow enough doubt to give the state legislatures political cover to appoint their own electors.
This isn't likely to happen. It would be challenged as an unconstitutional power grab, since state legislatures have almost always deferred to the results of the state's popular vote in assigning electoral votes. And not to mention, it would spark massive public outrage.
Thankfully, it doesn't look like Republican legislators in any of the key swing states want to expend their political capital defending a failed president, and some have even explicitly come out against this plan.
All this is to say, be patient, keep the faith, and don't fall into Trump's cry for attention. We must see this for what it is: A final attempt of a desperate, bitter man to cling to power.
Joe Biden will be our next president.
Robert Reich
Robert Reich is professor emeritus of public policy at Berkeley and former US secretary of labor. His latest book is the No. 1 New York Times best-seller, "Coming Up Short."
Joe Biden has won. He will be our next president.
Normally, the loser of the race would give a gracious concession speech, and accept the results.
That won't happen this time around, because Donald Trump is a pathological narcissist who will never admit defeat. But there's no legal requirement for the losing candidate to formally concede--it's just another tradition Trump will choose to ignore.
He can bluster and protest all he wants, but like it or not, the Constitution and federal law establish a clear timeline of how electoral votes are processed, and when the new president takes office. Here's how that process normally plays out, how Trump might try to undermine it, and why he is unlikely to succeed.
The first date to look out for is December 8th. After Election Day, states have until this date, called the "safe harbor" deadline, to resolve any election disputes. Each state has a unique process outlined in its state constitution for this, and the federal deadline was created so that state electoral disputes don't drag on endlessly.
Next is December 14th. This is when the electors meet in their states, and cast paper ballots for president and vice president. And then governors certify the electors' votes.
The governor sends these certified results to Congress by December 23rd.
On January 6th, 2021, the newly sworn-in Congress meets in a joint session to officially accept each state's Electoral College votes and count them. This is normally a ceremonial event in which the already-settled results of the election are simply made official. This is when the presidential race formally ends.
Lastly, on January 20th, the president and vice president are inaugurated.
Normally, no one pays much attention to this process before Inauguration Day because it goes off without a hitch. But we've seen that Trump will do anything to hold onto power. It's important to know how and when he might try to undermine this process, and also understand how unlikely it is he'll succeed.
Trump backers are trying to push Republican-controlled state legislatures to appoint their own slates of Trump electors. That's why the campaign has launched empty legal challenges to perfectly normal vote counts--trying to sow enough doubt to give the state legislatures political cover to appoint their own electors.
This isn't likely to happen. It would be challenged as an unconstitutional power grab, since state legislatures have almost always deferred to the results of the state's popular vote in assigning electoral votes. And not to mention, it would spark massive public outrage.
Thankfully, it doesn't look like Republican legislators in any of the key swing states want to expend their political capital defending a failed president, and some have even explicitly come out against this plan.
All this is to say, be patient, keep the faith, and don't fall into Trump's cry for attention. We must see this for what it is: A final attempt of a desperate, bitter man to cling to power.
Joe Biden will be our next president.
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