Ask every incumbent Republican if the only way they can lose reelection is if the vote is rigged.

[Tom Rinaldo]

In the blizzard of lies and outrageous statements that Trump makes daily, is easy to lose sight of how fundamentally destructive Trump's repeated claim is to our democracy that the only way he can lose reelection is if the vote is rigged against him. This can't be noted too often nor stressed enough. Trump's toxic assertion might be written off as mere hyperbole if he made it just once in some unscripted moment. Instead it is a central theme to his reelection campaign, and it would be comical if it wasn't so dangerous. Every politician knows you can lose any election, no matter how strong your support may seem to be, or how far you might be ahead in the polls, if events break against them. Three incumbent Presidents, from both political parties, were turned out of office by the voters over the last 45 years,

I want every Republican office holder running for reelection this year to answer these simple questions: Is it impossible for you to lose your reelection bid in an election that isn't rigged against you? Would you ever, under any circumstances, make that claim? What does it do to public trust in our democracy to have the President of the United States repeatedly claim that it is impossible for him to lose a fair election?

[SamKnause]

1. Why ???

They are known liars.

That is not hyperbole, that is fact, they lie.

Archives up to this minute of videos showing lie after lie.

Getting them on record would accomplish nothing.

It is no longer a party, it is a cult.

[Tom Rinaldo]

4. Because they have no choice other than answer no, and that is a repudiation of Trump

And it highlights the true despotic nature of what Trump is doing every time a Republican Congressman or Senator has to concede that of course they can't assert that the only way they can lose is if the election is rigged. If they try to claim that is impossible for them to lose a fair election the voters in their jurisdiction will be dumbfounded and turned off by their arrogance because only Trump is allowed to get away with making toxic claims like that.

If they say of course it is possible for them to lose a fair election but that they are confident they will win because yada yada yada, it begs the follow up questions I listed in my OP, and reporters then need to ask them those. I want McConnell, and Graham, and Ernst etc. on record with this. What Trump is claiming transcends any specific race. It questions the very bedrock of democracy itself. It goes without question that Republican incumbents would either flee from the questioner or tie themselves up in knots rather than condemn Trump for the obvious. Neither is a good look for them before the voters. But more immediate than that, it opens a new angle onto the critical issue of Trump undermining democracy, by giving it a context that resonates on the state and local level. Where does your Republican incumbent stand on undermining democracy? Would they ever claim that it was impossible for them to lose an election that was not rigged against them, and if not, why not?

[42bambi]

2. When Trump claims that the only way Republicans can lose is if the

vote is rigged; Knowing Trump and the way he speaks, he really means - the only way they can win is if the vote is rigged.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. I'm somewhat hopeful that Trump's argument about "rigged elections" can be

challenged by two things:

1) Polling Data right before November 3 that reflects Biden holding a wide margin over Trump, and

2) A landslide Democratic vote for both the House and the Senate. Why would voters install a slew of Democrats in Congress and then vote for Trump, knowing that he'd veto every piece of legislation passed?

[Tom Rinaldo]

5. Sure, me too, very hopeful in fact

But the simple fact that Trump is willing to claim that an election can only be fair if he wins remains outrageous regardless of where he stands in the polls. It is not a claim that Hillary made even though she was far ahead and Russians were working to tilt the scales. George W. Bush never said anything like it when he ran against Kerry, and Ronald Reagan never said anything like it, even when he was way ahead in the polls against Mondale.

There are two related but different "issues" Trump tries to raise. "Are Democrats trying to rig the election for Biden?" and "Is it impossible for Trump to lose a fair election?" The answer to both is emphatically NO. It is close to treasonous for Trump to allege the first without providing concrete air tight evidence that proves his claim. The fact that the FBI, even under leadership installed by Trump, doesn't see evidence of election rigging other than by Russia for Trump shows how despicable Trump's allegations are. And the answer to the second question is so obviously NO that is boggles the mind that Trump is trying to peddle that lie, to the detriment of our democracy.