During a Sunday appearance on CNN, journalist and author Carl Bernstein spoke to network host Ana Cabrera about a purported plot against Donald Trump created by Republicans in the Senate. As reported by Raw Story , the writer claimed this scheme is intended to prevent the U.S. leader from refusing to leave office if he loses in November.
“There are about 6,8,10 members of the Senate, Republicans in the Senate who are talking with each other about how to restrain what they regard as an out-of-control, almost madman — to use the term of one of those senators — who is determined to do anything to hold on to office regardless of its legality. Regardless of how far it crosses lines that are unthinkable, in terms of authoritarianism.”
According to Bernstein, these Republicans — some of whom he claims have spoken to upper chamber Majority Leader Mitch McConnell — are “very, very worried.” He also said that McConnell is concerned about the possibility of Trump resisting to leave office. The writer added that the Republican Party as a whole knows they would be held responsible for the chaos that ensues if the head of state refuses to accept a loss in November.
Per NBC News , McConnell downplayed Trump’s previous refusal to commit to a peaceful transfer of power. Not long after the president’s comments, the Kentucky lawmaker claimed that there would be an “orderly transition.” However, he declined to comment on whether he would pressure Trump to exit if the head of state refused to vacate the office in the case of an electoral defeat or what the GOP’s plans are for such a scenario.
Trump has repeatedly suggested that mail-in voting is rife with fraud and refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power. As The Inquisitr reported, he eventually committed to such a process during an NBC News town hall earlier this month. However, this commitment didn’t last long, and on Saturday, he suggested that he might not leave office peacefully, The Daily Beast reported.
“Well, when I won, did they give me a friendly transition?” he said at a Circleville, Ohio, rally. “They spied on my campaign, they did all this stuff. That was not a friendly transition.”
According to The Daily Beast , former President Barack Obama’s administration — which included then-Vice President Joe Biden, Trump’s 2020 Democratic opponent — helped Trump and his team take power in the White House following the real estate mogul’s surprise 2016 win. This process, the publication noted, is standard procedure for United States presidencies.
