President Donald Trump, after being asked whether he would “commit here today for a peaceful transferal of power after the November election,” passed on the chance to call for a calm and orderly election process.
The president based his answer on his discontent with the mail-in voting system, stating, “You know that I’ve been complaining very strongly about the ballots, and the ballots are a disaster.”
The question was asked at a press conference at the White House on September 23, where the reporter then asked the question again, according to the New York Times.
“There won’t be a transfer, frankly. There will be a continuation,” the president said.
Concern across party lines and political standings has risen in response to the president’s claims.
“He’s threatening the election process and saying out loud what everyone has assumed he’s been thinking,” said Julian E. Zelizer, a professor of American political history at Princeton University. “The more he makes these arguments, the more he normalizes the fact that this can be part of the conversation.”
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), expressed alarm over the comments on Twitter.
“Fundamental to democracy is the peaceful transition of power; without that, there is Belarus,” Romney wrote. “Any suggestion that a president might not respect this Constitutional guarantee is both unthinkable and unacceptable.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the transfer of power would continue as usual.
“The winner of the November 3rd election will be inaugurated on January 20. There will be an orderly transition just as there has been every four years since 1792,” he said via Twitter.
The dialogue is similar between political organizations at UCCS, but of lesser importance currently as organizations direct their energy towards voter registration.
Graduate student Nicholas St. John of the College Democrats at UCCS stated, “Impeached President Trump has made very clear that he intends to lose on Election Night and take said election to the Supreme Court.”
“Trump wouldn’t even accept the results of the 2016 election, and he won,” St. John said.
President Trump had formerly stated that he would not accept the election results in his first campaign against Hillary Clinton in 2016, according to PBS. If this has not been the first time Donald Trump has made the claim of not committing to a calm and orderly election, is it cause for concern?
The College Republicans at UCCS say no.
“It was clearly taken out of context, as he tried to beat around the bush but did so horribly in saying, ‘We’re going to have to see what happens,’” according to the graduate student and head of College Republicans, Ramon Reyes.
“This is not to excuse the missteps by Trump, this is merely explaining a different point of view,” Reyes clarified. “They [the media] do tend to sensationalize intentions to get those clicks…it is a business and human nature loves chaos.”
The College Democrats concluded their statement with, “No matter what Trump does, if he loses, he will not remain the President.”
“Republicans have their fair share of dogmatic ideological nonsense,” was the final sentiment shared by the College Republicans.
Both political organizations are continuing to work with UCCS students to expand political education and to encourage voter registration for the 2020 presidential election.
Other organizations on campus, such as the Young Democratic Socialists of America, were contacted but were unable to provide a statement.
Note: The cover photo is of President Trump at the presidential debate on Sept. 29. Photo courtesy of Vox.com