Schumer Floor Remarks On The Need For Senate Republicans To Stop Denying Reality And Acknowledge The Election Of Joe Biden As President

Washington, D.C. — Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today spoke on the Senate floor regarding the need to accept President-elect Joe Biden as the next president of the United States. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Instead of working to pull the country back together so that we can fight our common enemy —COVID-19—the Republican majority is spreading conspiracy theories, denying reality, and poisoning the well of our Democracy.

It seems like Republicans all over Washington are auditioning for Profiles in Cowardice—nudging each other aside to see who can say the most outlandish thing in support of President Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud.

Two members of this chamber went so far as to accuse their state’s election result of not being delivered “honestly” because President Trump didn’t win. They demanded their own Secretary of State, a fellow Republican, resign. The two Senators provided no evidence—not a shred—to support the claim that the election wasn’t conducted “honestly.”

A Republican governor this weekend supported the idea of states sending alternative slates of electors to the Electoral College. He encouraged Republican state legislatures in states that voted for Joe Biden to literally ignore the will of the voters to send electors who would vote for Donald Trump.

I understand that my Republican colleagues dislike the results of the presidential election. But this has gone beyond ridiculous. This is reckless.

President Trump is working to convince millions of Americans that the election wasn’t fair and was stolen, without a scrap of evidence.

Whatever fears my colleagues might have about President Trump abandoning their party if they don’t show sufficient support, that’s no excuse for sanctioning his efforts to discredit our democratic elections.

The percentage of Republicans who now believe that the election was not free and fair has doubled to 70%. Seven-zero. In the United States of America.

How much longer will Senate Republicans stand by while President Trump shreds Americans’ faith in our democracy?

I have a very simple message for my colleagues: the election is over. President Trump lost. Joe Biden will be the next President of the United States. Kamala Harris will be the next Vice President of the United States.

All over the country, legal claims by the president are being laughed out of court. Ironically, the president’s legal challenges have accomplished one thing: they have revealed just how secure our elections were. As courts from Pennsylvania to Michigan to Arizona dismiss these claims, they are confirming that there is no credible evidence of fraud or irregularities.

So far, not one vote has been tossed out.

These are facts. And the longer Republicans refuse to acknowledge them, the more damage is done.

In order to keep up this charade, the Trump administration is now actually denying national security briefings to President-elect Biden.

It is actively refusing to coordinate with the incoming administration on the coronavirus. How unimaginably stupid is that?

We shouldn’t even be discussing, for one minute, whether or not Republicans will accept the democratic results of our presidential election, or whether the next president should receive security briefings. That should be a given.

But it appears, sadly, unfortunately, that our Republican colleagues will follow President Trump all the way down the rabbit hole, to the very bitter end of his very bitter presidency.

And every day that goes by, the more damage is done to our country: to our national security, to our ability to fight COVID, and to Americans’ faith in our democracy.

So I plead with my Republican colleagues: stop denying reality. Stop recklessly sowing doubt about our democratic process. Stop going down to the lowest common denominator that President Trump seems to live with all the time. And start focusing on COVID.

Let's bring this country together and get some things done.

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