The White House issued a stern rebuke on Saturday after former President Donald Trump suggested suspending the Constitution in his ongoing crusade to discredit the results of the 2020 election.
White House rebukes Trump's suggestion to terminate parts of the Constitution over 2020 election
Trump's message on the Truth Social platform reiterated the baseless claims he has made since 2020 that the election was stolen. But he went further by suggesting that the country abandon one of its founding documents.
By Karoun Demirjian and
Toluse Olorunnipa
December 4, 2022 at 3:14AM
"Attacking the Constitution and all it stands for is anathema to the soul of our nation and should be universally condemned," White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement, calling the Constitution a "sacrosanct document."
"You cannot only love America when you win," he added.
Trump's message on the Truth Social platform reiterated the baseless claims he has made since 2020 that the election was stolen. But he went further by suggesting that the country abandon one of its founding documents.
"A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution," Trump wrote.
The post came a day after Twitter's new owner, Elon Musk, claimed he would expose how Twitter engaged in "free speech suppression" in the run-up to the 2020 election. But his "Twitter Files" did not show that the tech giant bent to the will of Democrats.
"UNPRECEDENTED FRAUD REQUIRES UNPRECEDENTED CURE!" Trump followed up in another post on Saturday afternoon on Truth Social.
Trump, who last month announced he would run again for president, helped launch Truth Social after he was banned from Twitter following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Musk has said he would allow Trump back on Twitter but the former president has not rejoined the platform.
Trump's sustained and unfounded attacks on the 2020 election result culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack by his supporters on the U.S. Capitol. Many GOP candidates also echoed his false claims ahead of this year's midterms, but lost their efforts to win key state posts.
In the weeks since the election, Trump has continued to press the lie that the 2020 election was rigged as he has announced his next White House bid.
The Democratic National Committee condemned his comments on Saturday, as did several other politicians.
"Trump's words and actions are unacceptable, they stoke hatred and political violence, and they are dangerous," Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) wrote in a tweet.
"Trump just called for the suspension of the Constitution and it is the final straw for zero republicans, especially the ones who call themselves 'constitutional conservatives,'" Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) wrote on Twitter.
As he has done before, the former president also baited GOP leaders into weighing in on his claims.
"I wonder what Mitch McConnell, the RINOS, and all of the weak Republicans who couldn't get the Presidential Election of 2020 approved and out of the way fast enough, are thinking now?" he wrote Saturday in a subsequent Truth Social post.
about the writers
Karoun Demirjian
Toluse Olorunnipa
His political views differed from a transgender classmate’s, but they forged a bond that lasted a decade — until Vance seemed to pivot, politically and personally.
