Rallying The Troops

 

 

 

Politico has reported

 

Top surrogates for the Trump campaign have been told to keep their Novembers clear for potential campaign events. And Trump campaign advisers said not to rule out the possibility Trump continues his rallies even as election officials continue to count ballots after the Nov. 3 election, according to a campaign surrogate and two Trump advisers.

 

It would be an upset for Trump to decide not to hold rallies after the election, whether it appears he wins or loses.  NBC News reported on Wednesday that the President expects to hold 11 rallies in the last 48 hours of the campaign. They would help increase turnout and give the impression of massive support which, after this election, would serve a strategic purpose.

That tactic would be a particularly Trumpian thing to do, and not only because he craves attention and adulation even more than does former President Obama. (And that's not easy.)  Trump understands, as Democrats might not, that in the very likely event that this thing isn't decided on November 3, it would remain more of a political process than legal process.

But don't trust me. Trust

Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh (who) wrote a concurring opinion in Wisconsin National Committee v. Wisconsin State Legislature in which he mentioned in dicta “those States [that] also want to be able to definitively announce the results of the election on election night, or as soon as possible thereafter;” and some “states want to avoid the chaos and suspicions of impropriety that can ensue if thousands of absentee ballots flow in after election day and potentially flip the results of an election;” and ‘“If the apparent winner the morning after the election ends up losing due to late-arriving ballots, charges of a rigged election could explode’” (quoting, out of context, professor Richard Pildes).

With "chaos and suspicions" and "explode," Justice Kavanaugh wasn't speaking of an orderly judicial process. He was riffing on the most important remark made by either presidential (or vice-presidential) candidate in debate this autumn.  "Proud Boys, stand back and stand by," Donald Trump threatened, 27 days before Kavanaugh's comment.

And then there is Pennsylvania, the leading candidate as the tipping point state in the election:

The pressure to shut down the PA vote count is going to be insane.

Even if the 538 forecast for PA proves accurate (Biden +5), given partisan disparities in mail-in voting, Trump could hold a 16 POINT lead by the end of Tue night.https://t.co/auZtvr1PuP pic.twitter.com/ErmMcjgDGn

— Justin Sandefur (@JustinSandefur) October 29, 2020

 

Ultimately, the dispute now being played out in court as to whether to count ballots postmarked by Election Day but received afterward will be decided in court. Ultimately. However, justice is not blind and the old maxim "The Supreme Court follows the election returns" may prevail, as it did in December, 2000 with the Brooks Brothers riot.

Those paid GOP operatives were clean-cut, fashionably if leisurely dressed, and unarmed. The Proud Boys are none of those, and Donald Trump, with rallies and otherwise, will be actively encouraging them and other vigilantes after the election. 

 

 

 

 Next up: the other, lesser, objective of the rallies.

 

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