Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) that Special Counsel Jack Smith might charge Trump with the crime of depriving Americans of their votes.
Video of Schiff:
Adam Schiff says Trump might be charged with depriving Americans of the vote, “You could deprive a person of their vote by saying that their vote should not be counted. The president was obviously trying to stop the counting of votes on election day.” pic.twitter.com/tY5WwR5luM
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) July 20, 2023
Rep. Schiff explained on MSNBC:
It could be very much be the flip side of the conspiracy to defraud, aiming to deprive a person of their vote. And you could deprive a person of their vote by saying that their vote should not be counted.
The president was obviously trying to stop the counting on election day because they knew the absentee ballots were running against him, but also trying to get state election officials to count votes that did not exist, also has the effect of undermining the real votes of the American people, so injury to voters, that could beat the prosecutors — or it could be the president’s actions and threatening the lives of election officials, depriving them of their right to do their jobs as poll workers, as election officials in and unmolested and without the fear of death. There are a number of ways that I think the facts would support such a charge, but we will have to wait and see whether the charges if this particular statute is used.
It would be fitting if Trump were charged with the crime of depriving Americans of their votes because that is exactly what Trump tried to do.
Donald Trump didn’t limit himself to protesting the 2020 election. He tried to take away, or in his words, not count the votes of people who voted against him in swing states.
Trump had no reason to try to take away the votes of Biden voters, except for the fact that they voted for Joe Biden.
What Trump tried to do was a crime, and a charge of trying to deprive Americans of their votes would protect democracy, and make sure that the voice of the voter is sacred.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
This story originally appeared on Politicususa
