Defiant Trump baselessly claims he was cheated as Biden nears victory
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In remarks from the White House briefing room Thursday night, President Trump bragged of Republican victories in the House and Senate before baselessly claiming that widespread voter fraud has caused his lead in the presidential race to "miraculously" slip away.
Why it matters: As Trump spoke, mail-in ballots that overwhelmingly favor Joe Biden continued to thin his lead in the must-win state of Pennsylvania. If Biden wins Pennsylvania, he will not need to win any of the other outstanding swing states.
What they're saying: Trump, who spent months railing against the reliability of mail-in voting, questioned why the ballots counted after Election Day were so "one-sided," expressing frustration that his leads were "miraculously being whittled away."
- He claimed without evidence that "fake polls" showing a wide Biden lead before the election were "designed to keep our voters at home, create the illusion of momentum for Biden, and diminish Republicans' ability to raise funds."
- Trump also claimed that the "election apparatus in Georgia," where his lead has thinned to less than 3,500 votes, is "run by Democrats" — despite the fact that Georgia's secretary of state is a Republican.
The bottom line: The president provided no evidence for his allegations of "tremendous corruption and fraud," but pledged to continue fighting to have ballots thrown out in court.
The other side: Joe Biden spoke briefly on Thursday afternoon and urged Americans "to stay calm" because the "process is working." He added that he has "no doubt that when the count is finished, Sen. Harris and I will be declared the winners."
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