CNN host Jake Tapper says it’s time Republicans acknowledge they “lost the election” and congratulate presumptive President-elect Joe Biden.
During an interview with Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, who cast his vote this year for the late President Ronald Reagan, the State of the Union host lauded him for congratulating Biden and said his GOP colleagues should follow his lead.
“As an American citizen, it’s really disappointing,” Tapper told Hogan on Sunday. “Not you, but your party’s leaders are acting like babies. You lost the election. Congratulate the President-Elect.”
Hogan is among a handful of Republicans who have expressed their congratulations to Biden and his running mate California Sen. Kamala Harris. Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker are among others to salute the duo. A number of world leaders, including United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson, have also congratulated the presumptive victory for Biden.
Trump has not conceded to Biden and is pursuing legal battles in several states alleging accusations of voter fraud.
Tapper further explained his disappointment during a monologue at the end of his show.
“Republican officials have been complicit in the indecent behavior the president has subjected the nation to for the last five years,” Tapper said. “The lies, the cruelty, the inadequate handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has cost more than 237,000 lives in the United States, a number that continues to grow.”
Tapper, whose been a frequent critic of Trump during his presidency, added that he believes lawmakers are refusing to congratulate Biden and Harris to hold onto their relationship with the president whose influence may continue to shape the party.
“He [Trump] is not leaving American political life,” Tapper said. “As long as there is a Twitter and a right-wing media ecosystem, Donald Trump will have a voice. As long as he has a voice, he will have influence with his tens of millions of supporters. And as long as he has influence with those supporters, Republicans who want to gain or to keep power will refuse to cross him.”
