NEW YORK, NY – In his article, “How Democrats Planned for Doomsday,” New York Times political correspondent Alexander Burns sheds a great deal of light on the organization of leftist groups in preparation for, and response to, the 2020 presidential election.
According to Burns, progressives planned for months to “[defend] the outcome of a free election from a president bent on overturning it.”
The “machinery of the left,” he writes, was:
“prepared by months spent sketching out doomsday scenarios and mapping out responses, by countless hours of training exercises and reams of opinion research.”
NY Times: “How Democrats Planned for Doomsday” https://t.co/nr6LzrzHHY
— Denis Warburton (@orangecomma) January 24, 2021
These efforts began to take shape in April 2020, when AFL-CIO strategist Michael Podhorzer penned a document entitled “Threats to the 2020 Election,” warning of “myriad dangers, including cyberattacks and mass disinformation.”
Podhorzer, along with other leftists such as the Fight Back Table, expressed concern about an upcoming election “crisis” in the form of a “battle” with a “would-be strongman (Trump) during a deadly pandemic.”
As a result, the Democracy Defense Coalition was established, an effort headed up by former Planned Parenthood strategist Deirdre Schifeling. The coalition soon expanded to over 200 leftist groups.
Part of the preparation for an expected “legal threat” to the election results came from Protect Democracy, which amusingly calls itself “nonpartisan” but points much of its website toward fighting Trump.
After calling this group “nonpartisan” himself, Burns also describes it as “an influential hub for efforts to battle Mr. Trump through the legal system.”
Protect Democracy issued a document that:
“identified people and governmental bodies in seven swing states who would play a key role in determining the integrity of the election.
“Among those listed were Republican state legislative leaders in battlegrounds like Michigan and Pennsylvania; the Michigan Board of State Canvassers; and Brad Raffensperger, the Georgia secretary of state.
Burns claims in his article:
“Mr. Trump would soon seek to twist every one of them to his advantage.”
The influence of the Democracy Defense Coalition’s preparatory efforts and reach was visible on election night, when the organizers canceled rallies.
Burns writes:
“Instead of throngs of protesters carrying Biden-Harris signs and competing for street space with Trump supporters, progressives assembled in smaller groups around vote-counting facilities in Philadelphia and Detroit, aiming to head off any intimidation tactics from the right.”
“Republicans at every level of government who incited the mob “must be removed or resign,” read one version of the group’s intended message, contained in Ms. Shenker-Osorio’s presentation and reviewed by The New York Times.”
via @NYTimes https://t.co/LixQesE4og
— Sabra Briere (@sabriere) January 25, 2021
After the election, other preparation came to the fore.
Art Reyes, leader of We the People Michigan, “bombard[ed] legislators’ offices with phone calls” and sent “several dozen volunteers” to meet with two Republican leaders of the Michigan House, both before their departure from Michigan and after they landed in D.C.
Had the two legislators backed Trump rather than planning to “‘follow the normal process’ regarding the state’s electors,” the coalition planned to target them further.
Burns writes:
“Jegath Athilingam, a strategist who helped craft the progressives’ messaging on Michigan, said they had been poised to deliver ‘more of an aggressive’ denunciation of the lawmakers had they colluded with Mr. Trump.”
Perhaps the most thought-provoking aspect of the coalition’s plans and preparation was the anticipation of violence. If one reads between the lines, that violence was anticipated, by the left, to be committed by the left.
According to Burns:
“Nelini Stamp, a top official with the Working Families Party, said her organization had been in touch with bail funds that could be activated in response to mass arrests and had readied a separate fund to raise money for the families of anyone killed in violence on or around Election Day.
“Their thinking, Ms. Stamp said, had been informed by the immense protests after the killing of George Floyd.”
Common sense would dictate that the bail funds for “mass arrests” were not intended for any person on the right, so it follows that the left was anticipating that their own people were going to be involved in committing acts of violence.
Furthermore, whether or not the left wants to admit it openly, the George Floyd protests were indeed characterized by leftist violence and destruction.
The coalition evidently takes alleged incitement to heart, stating:
“Republicans at every level of government who incited the mob ‘must be removed or resign.’”
As such, perhaps some self-scrutiny should follow, as their election plans indicate preparation for bailing out their own violent members.
AMITE CITY, LA – An arrest was recently made in Amite City pertaining to alleged election fraud, but the suspect implicated in the alleged offense bears some troubling concerns. Apparently, the Amite City Councilman is being charged with eight counts of election fraud.
Attorney General Jeff Landry says a city councilman in Louisiana has been arrested for alleged election fraud. https://t.co/0XIaUfXSax
— WAFB (@WAFB) January 5, 2021
According to a statement made by both Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin on January 7th, Amite City Councilman Emanuel Zanders was arrested for allegedly submitting falsified voter registration applications that he knew to be materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent.
During a conference in Baton Rouge, AG Landry and Secretary Ardoin addressed the press expressing how important election integrity is given the current times.
AG Landry stated:
“Anything other than a one-for-one vote distorts our election process.”
“Those who wish to distort an election in this matter are breaking the law and betraying their fellow citizens. It is even more disheartening when the perpetrator is an elected official.”
Following those same sentiments, Secretary Ardoin added:
“Election integrity matters…Yesterday’s arrest is the culmination of work by my office, the Attorney General’s Office, the Registrar of Voters, and others; and it proves that the multi-level checks and balances of our election processes and procedures work.”
“This should serve as a stark warning to those looking to violate our election laws.”
According to The Advocate news report: “Zanders, a 52-year-old Democrat, was charged with 8 counts of election fraud”https://t.co/iYvDbXD3uK
— Greg Hoyt (@GregHoytLET) January 8, 2021
From what officials say on the matter, Zanders became the target of a joint investigation conducted by the the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation and the Secretary of State’s Office.
Back in October of 2020, the Tangipahoa Parish Registrar of Voters – which Amite City resides within said parish – had reached out to the Secretary of State’s Office when concerns first started cropping up about potential fraudulent voter registration forms containing bogus addresses.
This led investigators to finding evidence that Zanders allegedly duped over twenty people within Louisiana into signing incomplete registration forms that he would later alter the address information for.
Outside of that alleged series of acts, it’s further alleged that Zanders submitted another voter registration application of another Louisiana resident where he put down his own address on their application.
Concluding the statements on the recent arrest and charging of Zanders, AG Landry noted:
“Election integrity is the bedrock of our election process. I am proud of the work Secretary Ardoin has done to protect our elections and weed out bad actors who wish to betray our system and way of life.”
According to Louisiana Election Code RS 18:1461.2, Zanders could face up to two years in prison for each count of election fraud if convicted.
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