Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville has warned that unless former Vice President Joe Biden defeats President Donald Trump by 6% or more, Trump and his Republican allies will manipulate the courts in order to “steal the election” in key swing states like Florida and Pennsylvania. Carville is hardly the only one who fears that the Trump campaign will play dirty on and after Election Night. And according to Media Matters’ Matt Gertz, Trump has an accomplice in his plan to “steal the election”: Fox News.
In article published the day before the election, Gertz explains, “With Election Day looming, the expert consensus is that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is in a strong position, with President Donald Trump needing to catch a number of breaks to win. But Fox News’ propagandists are making it sound like the president is the odds-on favorite, priming their audience to attribute any defeat to Democratic fraud. Fox’s effort is a necessary, if not sufficient, step toward enacting Trump’s openly touted plan to try to steal the election — if it is close enough to do so — by preventing the counting of ballots legally cast for Biden. And even if the network fails to keep Trump in the White House, its reckless disinformation could raise tensions to feverish heights, potentially leading to political violence.”
Gertz notes that Fox News’ recent election coverage has “revolved around presenting anecdotal evidence that favors a Trump win as superior to polling data pointing to a likely Biden victory.” Continue reading.