President Trump, after twice declining to commit to a peaceful transition of power, told a 9 p.m. "Make America Great Again" rally in Newport News, Va. that he would only lose if there was "mischief."
What he's saying: "That's the only way we're gonna lose is if there's, uh, mischief — mischief, and it'll have to be on a big scale. So be careful. And we do want a very friendly transition. But we don’t want to be cheated, and be stupid," he said.
- Earlier in the day, Trump said in Atlanta: "We may end up in a dispute for a long time, because that’s the way they want it. But we’re gonna end up winning — that’s for sure."
Of note: New York Times Quote of the Day, from "At Pentagon, Fears Grow That Trump Will Pull Military Into Election Unrest" ... John Gans, chief speechwriter to the SecDef during the Obama administration:
- "The Pentagon plans for war with Canada and a zombie apocalypse, but they don’t want to plan for a contested election. These are huge questions that have an impact on the reputation of the institution."