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Congress held its first hearing last week on Arizona's utterly bonkers election "audit," and House Republicans participating in the discussion put on a highly discouraging display. For example, Republican Rep. Andy Biggs, the chair of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus, insisted "we don't know" who actually won Arizona's presidential election last year, despite reality.

At the same hearing, Biggs' fellow Arizonan, Republican Rep. Paul Gosar, peddled an incoherent conspiracy theory, which appeared to be based on strange claims from secret sources the congressman seemed to make up after having already peddled equally strange conspiracy theories based on equally strange claims from different secret sources whom Gosar also apparently made up.

For those inclined to be generous when assessing the state of the contemporary Republican Party, the likely argument is that folks like Biggs and Gosar are fringe figures, known for voicing extreme views. It's not as if the GOP is putting irresponsible officials in leadership positions, right?

It's against this backdrop that House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, followed in the fringe figures' footsteps yesterday. The Associated Press reported:

The House's second-ranking Republican, Rep. Steve Scalise, repeatedly refused to say on Sunday that the 2020 election wasn't stolen, standing by Donald Trump's lie that Democrat Joe Biden won the White House because of mass voter fraud. More than 11 months after Americans picked their president and almost nine months since Biden was inaugurated, Scalise was unwilling during a national television interview to acknowledge the legitimacy of the vote, instead sticking to his belief that the election results should not have been certified by Congress.

Remember, Scalise isn't some random backbencher with a low profile and limited influence. On the contrary, if Republicans take back the House in next year's midterm elections, the far-right Louisianan will likely become the House majority leader.

And yet, there he was on Fox News yesterday, getting pressed by host Chris Wallace to acknowledge that President Joe Biden legitimately won the 2020 presidential election. Acknowledging his own country's electoral reality, however, was a step Scalise simply would not take.

This is not a situation in which the GOP congressman is a shrinking violet, lacking the temperament to denounce ideas with which he disagrees. During the same interview yesterday, Scalise said those who equate Georgia Republicans' new voter-suppression law with Jim Crow are pushing "flat-out lies."

In other words, Scalise is capable of condemning ideas he finds objectionable in no uncertain terms. When it comes to the Republican Party's Big Lie, however, Scalise repeatedly insisted that states didn't follow election laws last fall to his satisfaction, which in his mind justifies his skepticism about the results.

Three times, Wallace tried to get Scalise to acknowledge the truth. Three times, the high-ranking GOP lawmaker refused.

A tiny number of congressional Republicans were displeased. Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, for example, wrote via Twitter, "Millions of Americans have been sold a fraud that the election was stolen. Republicans have a duty to tell the American people that this is not true. Perpetuating the Big Lie is an attack on the core of our constitutional republic." Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois called Scalise's rhetoric "unacceptable."

The duo, however, was part of a vanishingly small minority. For most congressional Republicans, Scalise's nonsense reflected a new normal.

The bottom line is unavoidable: The line between the GOP fringe on Capitol Hill and the GOP leadership has been blurred to the point that it hardly exists at all. When the #2 House Republican isn't lending credence to his party's Big Lie, House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik is toying with a white-supremacist conspiracy theory and trying to blame House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for the Jan. 6 attack.

It was just last month, meanwhile, when House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy threatened private companies in the hopes of obstructing a bipartisan congressional investigation, which he soon followed by falsely claiming that the FBI had cleared Donald Trump of wrongdoing on Jan. 6.

There ought to be an important gap between the Republican Party's radicals and the GOP's leadership. In 2021, they appear to be reading from awfully similar scripts.

Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MSNBC political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "The Impostors: How Republicans Quit Governing and Seized American Politics."

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Why Steve Scalise's stance on the Republicans' Big Lie matters - MSNBC

Two GOP officials have urged Republicans in some cases to vote Democratic in the 2022 midterm elections as one of several ways to bolster the party from candidates they described as "pro-Trump extremists."

Miles Taylor, a Trump-era Department of Homeland Security chief of staff, and Christine Todd Whitman, a former Republican governor of New Jersey, wrote a New York Times op-ed article that ran Monday. Taylor is best known for anonymously writing a 2018 op-ed article in The Times describing a "resistance" of Trump administration officials working to tamper what he called the former president's "worst inclinations."

Together, Taylor and Whitman asked that the GOP's base consider supporting Democrats so "conservative pragmatists" could retake control of the party.

"Rational Republicans are losing the party civil war," they wrote. "And the only near-term way to battle pro-Trump extremists is for all of us to team up on key races and overarching political goals with our longtime political opponents: the Democrats."

They added: "It's a strategy that has worked. Mr. Trump lost re-election in large part because Republicans nationwide defected, with seven percent who voted for him in 2016 flipping to support Joe Biden, a margin big enough to have made some difference in key swing states."

The two argued that this move was necessary because the Republican leadership had "turned belief in conspiracy theories and lies about stolen elections into a litmus test for membership and running for office." Taylor and Whitman also renewed a threat for them and more than 100 other former GOP officials to try to start a new center-right party if Trump-backed candidates continued to win Republican primaries.

"The best hope for the rational remnants of the Republican Party is for us to form an alliance with Democrats to defend American institutions, defeat far-right candidates, and elect honorable representatives next year including a strong contingent of moderate Democrats," Taylor and Whitman wrote.

Their strategy would involve GOP voters supporting Democrats like Rep. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona in what they called "difficult races" likely to feature Trump-supported Republicans. They also advocated defending what they called a "small nucleus of courageous Republicans" such as Reps. Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, and Peter Meijer.

Kinzinger, for one, said in September that he thought the GOP shouldn't win a majority in the House if it were "pushing division and pushing lies." Cheney also said in September that she was not ready to cede the GOP to the "voices of extremism," adding that many Republicans in the House and the Senate had cheered her on privately in her fight against Trump.

The Republican National Committee did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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GOP officials are urging Republican voters to back Democrats in 2022 - Business Insider

Of the many crises that face the country, perhaps the most important is the coordinated Republican attack on voting rights. Since the beginning of the year, new laws have been enacted in 19 states that could disenfranchise minority voters by making it harder to vote. Once-rock-solid red states won by President BidenJoe BidenGruden out as Raiders coach after further emails reveal homophobic, sexist comments Abbott bans vaccine mandates from any 'entity in Texas' Jill Biden to campaign with McAuliffe on Friday MORE are leading the way.

In Arizona, a new statute threatens election officials with felony prosecution if ballots are mailed to voters who did not request them, while in Georgia it is a misdemeanor to distribute food and water to those waiting in line. The Georgia law also prohibits unsolicited mailing of absentee ballot applications and requires voters to submit identification to have their requests approved. Both states give the legislature the power to certify results, removing the secretary of state from carrying out this traditional formality.

In Arizona, Democrat Katie Hobbs certified Joe Bidens victory in the 2020 presidential election, while in Georgia Republican Brad Raffensperger formalized Bidens win despite Donald TrumpDonald TrumpPennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro enters governor's race GOP lawmakers introduce measure in support of Columbus Day Bannon's subpoena snub sets up big decision for Biden DOJ MOREs plea to find 11,780 votes, one more than Bidens winning margin.

In 15 other states, 35 bills have passed at least one chamber, making it easier for Republicans to interfere. For example, in Pennsylvania, Florida and Texas, Republicans want audits of the 2020 ballots. Pennsylvania Senate Republicans are demanding 2020 voters driver license information, partial Social Security numbers, changes in voter registration and information about whether ballots were cast by mail or in person. Gov. Tom WolfTom WolfPennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro enters governor's race Four Democratic governors agree to share gun crime data in effort to thwart violence Overnight Health Care Presented by EMAA Biden unravels Trump rule banning clinics from abortion referrals MORE, a Democrat, calls the ploy a sham.

The Freedom to Vote Act guarantees a national right to vote in federal elections. It expands voter registration; sets a minimum number of days and hours for early voting; reduces in-person wait times to no more than 30 minutes; permits postage-free absentee ballots that do not require either witnesses or notarization and will be counted seven days after the election if postmarked by Election Day.

Voters whose signatures are rejected must be notified and allowed to correct the issue. Poll-watchers are restricted in their proximity to those casting ballots, and polling places will be required on college campuses. The bill would curtail partisan gerrymandering and ban any prohibitions on the distribution of food and water to those waiting to vote.

Sen. Joe ManchinJoe ManchinUsing shared principles to guide our global and national energy policy Sinema's office denies report that she wants to cut 0B in climate spending Juan Williams: Women wield the power MORE (D-W.Va.), a key player in the voting rights drama, had this legislation written to his specifications, and all 50 Senate Democrats have voiced their support. Manchin has embarked on a quixotic quest to find 10 Republicans to back it.

But finding enough Republicans to overcome a Senate filibuster is an exercise in futility. Susan CollinsSusan Margaret CollinsBiden signs bill to help victims of 'Havana syndrome' The Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Facebook - After high drama, Senate lifts debt limit Here are the 11 GOP senators who helped advance the debt extension MORE (R-Maine), a frequent Manchin partner in bipartisanship, has voiced her opposition, saying the law has fundamental problems of federalizing state elections. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellDemocrats are ignoring the only thing that matters The Hill's 12:30 Report - Presented by The National Columbus Education Foundation - Positive developments on COVID-19 treatments The Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Altria - Political crosscurrents persist for Biden, Dems MORE (R-Ky.) has pronounced the bill all-but-dead: We will not be supporting it. Sen. Lindsey GrahamLindsey Olin GrahamMost Senate Republicans don't want to see Trump run again Trump heads to Iowa as 2024 chatter grows GOP tries to take filibuster pressure off Manchin, Sinema MOREs (R-S.C.) opposition is even more succinct: Nope.

Once more, obdurate GOP opposition will kill meaningful legislation backed by Manchin, who nevertheless stubbornly clings to his beloved filibuster.

Todays Trump-led Republicans have abandoned the partys historic roots. After the Civil War, Republicans supported federal guarantees to ensure the right of African Americans to cast their ballots. When federal troops left the defeated Confederacy in 1877, Democrats purged Blacks from the voting rolls and voted them out of Congress.

In 1888, Republicans accused President Grover Cleveland and his Democratic congressional majorities of owing their existence to the suppression of the ballot by a criminal nullification of the Constitution and laws of the United States. Benjamin Harrison, who beat Cleveland that year, asked in his inaugural address: How shall those who practice election frauds recover that respect for the sanctity of the ballot which is the first condition and obligation of good citizenship? The man who has come to regard the ballot box as a jugglers hat has renounced his allegiance.

Harrison told Congress that denial of the franchise does not expend itself upon those whose votes are suppressed. Every constituency in the Union is wronged. He later accused those opposed to federal election involvement of racism, saying those animosities ought not to be confessed without shame and cannot be given any weight in the discussion without dishonor.

Donald Trumps 2020 loss magnified many Republicans fear of a future in which whites will soon be a racial minority. A recent poll found 84 percent of Trump voters worry that discrimination against whites will increase significantly in the next few years. Trumps obsession with his 2020 defeat, and his refusal to accept it, has given way to a Republican crusade to reform election laws that may result in disenfranchising enough minority voters to ensure Republican victories.

In a July speech, President Biden called these changes a 21st century Jim Crow assault. In the same address, Biden posed the same question to Republicans that famously dethroned anti-communist crusader Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-Wis.) back in the 1950s: Have you no shame?

The answer is clear: no. Republicans have shamelessly concluded that winning doesnt necessarily mean garnering the most votes. Instead, its about rigging the system. They are todays new Dixiecrats. Historys discredited Dixiecrats would be proud.

John Kenneth White is a professor of politics at the Catholic University of America. His latest book is What Happened to the Republican Party?

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Republicans are today's Dixiecrats | TheHill - The Hill

WASHINGTON The Houses second-ranking Republican, Rep. Steve Scalise, repeatedly refused to say on Sunday that the 2020 election wasnt stolen, standing by Donald Trumps liethat Democrat Joe Biden won the White House because of mass voter fraud.

More than 11 months after Americans picked their president and almost nine months since Biden was inaugurated, Scalise was unwilling during a national television interview to acknowledge the legitimacy of the vote, insteadsticking to his beliefthat the election results should not have been certified by Congress.

Ive been very clear from the beginning, he said. If you look at a number of states, they didnt follow their state-passed laws that govern the election for president. That is what the United States Constitution says. They dont say the states determine what the rules are. They say the state legislatures determine the rules, the Louisiana congressman said on Fox News Sunday.

Pressed by moderator Chris Wallace on whether the election went beyond a few irregularities to be considered stolen, Scalise responded: Its not just irregularities. Its states that did not follow the laws set which the Constitution says theyre supposed to follow.

Trump left office in January a few weeks after a mob of his supportersstormed the Capitol in a violent riotin an attempt to prevent Congress from formally declaring Biden the winner.

As Trump mulls a 2024 presidential bid, he has been intensifying efforts to shame and potentially remove members of his party who are seen as disloyal tohis bogus claims that last years election was illegitimate. House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of California, who is vying to become speaker if the GOP takes control after the 2022 midterm election, continues to defend Trump and his false assertions.

Ata rally Saturday in Iowa, Trump spent almost 30 minutes arguing falsely that he had won Arizona, Georgia and Pennsylvania. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds stood by and welcomed his return to their state.

In fact, no election was stolen from Trump. His former attorney general, William Barr,found no evidenceof widespread election corruption. Allegations of massive voting fraud also have been dismissed by a succession of judges and refuted by state election officials and an arm of the Homeland Security Department during the Trump administration.

Scalise on Sunday appeared to be referring to the legal argument, made in several lawsuits backed by Trump before and after last Novembers election, that the Constitution gives the power of election administration exclusively to state lawmakers. The suits sought to invalidate a number of pandemic-era accommodations including expanded mail voting that were put in place by governors, state election officials and judges.

The high court ultimatelyturned away the cases, declining to rule on the matter. Theres no indication in any of the suits that changing the COVID-19 accommodations would have altered a states election results.

Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., who is serving on a House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, on Sunday slammed Scalise for spreading Trumps Big Lie.

Millions of Americans have been sold a fraud that the election was stolen, Cheney tweeted. Republicans have a duty to tell the American people that this is not true. Perpetuating the Big Lie is an attack on the core of our constitutional republic.

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No. 2 House Republican refuses to say election wasnt stolen - PBS NewsHour

FIRST ON FOX: The Republican online fundraising platform WinRed helped GOP candidates raise $146 million in the third quarter of 2021 as the midterm elections and a chance for Republicans to take back the House and the Senate near.

The total is $15 million more than WinRed's second-quarter tally and brings the total raised on the platform so far in 2021 to $401 million, according to numbers first shared with Fox News.

"Up and down the ballot, WinRed continues to exceed expectations and deliver real results for campaigns and committees across the country. Ahead of the 2022 election, WinRed is putting the GOP on the right path to raise more money than ever before," WinRed President Gerrit Lansing said in a statement.

WALKER OFF TO FAST START, HAULING IN $3.7M SINCE LAUNCHING SENATE BID

The $146 million performance is likely to be significantly less than what WinRed's Democratic counterpart ActBlue brought in between July and September, as ActBlue has been around for much longer than WinRed and still routinely outraises its GOP competitor.

But according to WinRed, it's raised a total of $2.5 billion for Republican candidates since it launched in 2019, a total ActBlue took 14 years to hit.

Both ActBlue and WinRed take a small fee from any donations to a campaign in exchange for the campaigns' use of their platform. WinRed recently changed its fee structure to direct more money to candidates.

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Among other notable third-quarter numbers, according to a WinRed spokesperson, were that it raised $23.8 million for state and local campaigns on WinRed in the past three months, and it raised $60.5 million from first-time donors. The average donation size for the quarter was $37.60.

With flagging approval numbers for President Biden and Democrats' agenda stalled in Congress, Republicans are optimistic that they can take back the House of Representatives in 2022. They face a difficult Senate map, however, because Republicans are defending far more seats than Democrats this cycle.

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WinRed pulls in $146M for Republican candidates in third quarter, passes $400M for the year - Fox News