Stop saying the Election was stolen from Donald Trump
Some are talking about how the Presidential Election was stolen by the Democrats. Others criticize those folks as peddling false conspiracy theories. Just stop. All of you - just stop.
Can't you see our country is suffering not just because of that debate but because you're missing the more important issue that needs to be addressed.
The Election is over, Joe Biden is President. But the way the election was run has left our country badly divided and needing healing. It's time to change the questions being discussed to ones whose answers can unite the country.
Try these questions on for size.
1. Is it good for the United States of America that as many as 74 million people question the integrity of the last election?
Can anyone honestly answer "yes" to that question? Can anyone honestly say it's good that tens of millions think the election was fixed? Is having doubts about the integrity of our election processes good for our country?
2. If you believe, as I do, that the answer to question 1 is "no, this is not good for our country" then the next question is "how do we fix that situation?"
Social media companies have tried censoring anyone who questions what happened in the last election and, in some cases, kicking people off their platforms. News outlets have been labeling people challenging the election results as "conspiracy theorists" and mocking them.
How has that worked so far? To me, it's been as effective as putting your hands over your ears and saying "la la la la la."
Why don't we try a different approach. Why don't make a list what happened in the election that people have taken issue with and ask two questions: 1) Does that promote confidence in the integrity of the election process? and 2) If not, why don't we fix it so that doesn't happen again?
Example: in Georgia at a county office where ballots were being counted, late one night election officials told everyone to leave - poll watchers for both parties and the media, everyone, they all had to leave the room. After everyone left, video shows those election officials pulled suitcases filled with ballots out from under a table and started counting those ballots. Put aside whether there were any shenanigans and ask yourself - does that promote confidence in the integrity of the election process? If not, why don't we fix it so that doesn't happen again?
Example: in a number of locations around the country, poll watchers from either or both parties were forced to stand 100 feet away from the people reviewing the ballots. And in some cases poll watchers from one party were kicked out, while poll watchers from the other party were allowed to stay and the party removed was not allowed an opportunity to replace the person removed. Does that promote confidence in the integrity of the election process? If not, why don't we fix it so that doesn't happen again?
Example: prior to the election, Judges and Executive branch officials modified the rules for how elections were to be run, in some cases the changes were made contrary to what the law requires. There were 8 months from March to November and no effort was made to seek Legislative Branch approval of these changes. Does that promote confidence in the integrity of the election process? If not, why don't we fix it so that doesn't happen again?
Example: It was reported that one of the software companies that supports electronic voting sent out updates to their software to be installed just days before the November election. This isn't a bug fix to an app on your phone. This was an important upgrade to the software that runs the machines that protect our right to vote. There was not time for local governments to evaluate and test the software, they just had to load it for the election. Does that promote confidence in the integrity of the election process? If not, why don't we fix it so that doesn't happen again?
President Trump complained that the election was stolen and a lot of people - tens of millions of people - agree with him because events like the ones I described above and more actually happened. If they had not happened, and my position is they should not have happened, then it would only be tens of people and not tens of millions who believed President Trump.
Progressive or Conservative, Republican, Democrat or Independent - if you care about the United States, then we need to move on from debating who really won the election and focus on what needs to be done restore confidence in the integrity of our elections. Addressing real issues to benefit our is a discussion that will unite people not divide them .
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