Trump call with Georgia secretary of state draws bipartisan criticism
FOX News chief White House correspondent John Roberts joins 'Special Report' with the latest on leaked audio
President Trump has filed a new lawsuit against Georgia to decertify the 2020 election results.
The complaint filed on New Year's Eve came just before The Washington Post obtained audio of a weekend phone conversation between the president and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which Trump insisted he won Georgia in 2020 and urged Raffensperger to "find" enough votes to reverse the state’s results.
"[Trump] does not seek a remedy disenfranchising any lawful votes. ... Rather, he asks the court to uphold the rule of law and the important segregation of powers principles in the Georgia Constitution (executive vs. legislature), which are fundamentally intended to protect all voters in the country," the complaint reads.
The president accuses Georgia of violating the Georgia Elections Code, due process and the electors and elections clauses by ignoring "express directions regarding the collection, handling, processing, canvassing and counting of" mail-in ballots, as well as "improper certification of elections."
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Raffensperger responded to the lawsuit by saying 5 million Georgians, as well as the state's electors, voted lawfully for the next president of the United States in the 2020 election.
Kemp recertified the state’s election results on Dec. 7 after a recount requested by Trump confirmed that Democrat Joe Biden won the state, and the governor then recertified the state’s 16 presidential electors. The recount was the third tally of votes in the presidential race in the state.
The total number of votes in the recount results certified on Dec. 7 and posted on the secretary of state’s website was 766 fewer than the number certified when the ballots were first tallied after the election. Biden’s lead dropped from 12,670 to 11,779. That appears to be largely due to a discrepancy in Fulton County, the state’s most populous county, which includes most of Atlanta.
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"The election, certification and casting of ballots are final and over," the response reads. "The matter is now before Congress as set forth ... to count the certified votes. Georgia has completely complied with all requirements under the United States Constitution, federal and state election law."
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger speaks during a news conference on Monday, Nov. 30, 2020, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Lawyers from Georgia Attorney General Christopher Carr representing Kemp and Raffensberger go on to accuse Trump of seeking "to disenfranchise millions of Georgia voters at the thirteenth hour – despite plaintiff’s own dilatory and confusing actions."
"There have been numerous suits filed since the Nov. 3, 2020, general election, challenging most of the issues set forth in [Trump’s] motion. In all resolved suits, the claims have been flatly rejected," the lawyers wrote.
The president and his supporters have filed about 60 lawsuits in various states challenging the results of the 2020 presidential election, almost none of which have granted any relief to Trump's legal team, according to Politico.
Trump requested an expedited hearing on the motion and for all appeals to be submitted by Wednesday at the latest when House and Senate Republicans are expected to express support for Trump during a joint session to certify the Electoral College results.
Trump has a separate lawsuit against Raffensperger open in Fulton County.
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People from across the U.S. are also expected to rally in support of the president on Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser released a Sunday statement saying the city will do what it must "to ensure all who attend remain peaceful."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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