President Trump suggested on Thursday that we should delay the 2020 presidential election, citing concerns about mail-in voting. Not only is this argument completely irresponsible, but it is also a gift to Democrats.
Already, Democrats are arguing that Trump will not leave the White House voluntarily if he loses to Joe Biden, or that if he does win in November, it will be because he stole the election. Such comments are typically written off as hyperbolic grandstanding. But now Democrats have reason to believe they’re right, as do voters:
With Universal Mail-In Voting (not Absentee Voting, which is good), 2020 will be the most INACCURATE & FRAUDULENT Election in history. It will be a great embarrassment to the USA. Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote???
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 30, 2020
There are certainly reasonable concerns about mail-in voting and its potential for fraud, but Trump does not have the right or the authority to delay November’s election. Only the states and Congress have the power to delay the election process and only if an extreme circumstance demands it. But America has faced many such extreme circumstances in the past and has not once delayed a presidential election. And we will not do so now just because Trump dislikes mail-in voting.
But this isn’t about mail-in voting at all. This is about Trump’s struggling campaign and the poll numbers that show him losing to Biden. Truly, this is a sign of weakness. And Democrats will not hesitate to take advantage of it.
Trump is playing directly into their hands. Why not accuse him of trying to steal the election? He’s already suggested delaying it because he’s clearly worried about the results. So what more might he be willing to do to secure a victory? This is the logic Democrats will use against him to stoke fears about Trump and drive turnout. And if they succeed in convincing Americans that Trump is trying to subvert democracy, he will have no one but himself to blame.
