Amidst all the uncertainty surrounding the upcoming presidential election, the nation is on edge.
Many fear what may happen should Trump lose the election and refuse to transfer power peacefully. When asked during an interview whether or not he would commit to a peaceful transfer of power, he stated, “We’re gonna have to see what happens…We wanna get rid of the ballots and you’ll have a very peaceful–there won’t be a transfer, frankly, there’ll be a continuation.”
Trump’s volatile behavior that has spurred this fear of what is to come for after the election, has been seen all throughout this election process. Most recent was his outburst during his 60 Minutes interview with Lesley Stahl. In the video clip released by the White House, a dispute between Stahl and Trump ensued, in which Trump accused the Obama Administration for spying on his campaign back in 2016.
Stahl disagreed with the president stating, “There’s no real evidence of that…This is 60 Minutes, and we can’t put on things we can’t verify.”
After this, Trump abruptly ended the interview and took to Twitter to voice his disdain towards the host and her “biased” interview. “Look at the bias, hatred, and rudeness on behalf of 60 Minutes and CBS,” he tweeted. He then commented on the previous debate’s mediator, Kristen Welker.
Many speculate that his fears about the outcome of the election–more specifically, his potential loss–to be the reason for his notably short temper recently. The polls have shown that Trump is losing favor, as he sits comfortably behind Democratic candidate, and former Vice President, Joe Biden. In an article for The Atlantic, reporters speculated that Trump is currently exploiting a tactic he used frequently in his 2016 election: the idea of “…rigged polls and fraudulent ballots.”
Trump has cultivated this idea since before the election process even began, and it is a tactic he frequently uses to deflect questions about a peaceful transition of power. Democrats and Republicans alike await the outcome of the election with flurried patience.
