Rep. Elise Stefanik (RN.Y.) did not commit to certifying the 2024 election results in an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday.
During an interview with Stefanik, who serves as the House Republican leader, moderator Kristen Welker asked, “Will you vote to certify the 2024 election results, no matter what they are? “Will you vote to certify it again?”
Stefanik, who supported former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims that there was widespread fraud in the 2020 election, voted to certify the 2020 results in Pennsylvania and several other states. He explained why there was no such change, saying, “There is an unconstitutional act that bypasses the state legislature and unilaterally changes the election law.”
After Mr. Welker pressed her again on the issue, Ms. Stefanik declined to certify the election results and criticized efforts to remove Mr. Trump from ballots in states such as Colorado and Maine.
“We’re going to find out if this is a legitimate and valid election,” she said. “What we’re seeing so far is that Democrats are trying very desperately to remove President Trump from the ballot. It’s an oppression of the American people. And the Supreme Court has decided to take this case. scheduled to be heard in February, which should result in a 9-0 vote allowing President Trump to vote, because that is the decision of the American people this November.
Welker noted that he had not heard Stefanik promise to certify the election results, and asked, “Are you promising to certify the results only if former President Trump wins?” Does that mean only if former President Trump wins? ”
“No, it means whether it is constitutional or not,” Stefanik said. “What we saw in 2020 was an unconstitutional circumvention of the Constitution by bypassing state legislatures to change election laws.”
Stefanik also defended President Trump’s recent comments calling the rioters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and who remain in prison “hostages,” a phrase he echoed. . At a rally in Iowa on Saturday, President Trump called on President Joe Biden to release the rioters from federal prison. “I call them hostages. Some call them prisoners. I call them hostages. Free the J6 hostages, Joe. Free them, Joe. . It’s very easy to do, Joe.”
Asked if she supported her statement in the House of Representatives that called January 6 a “truly tragic day for America,” Stefanik said, “I have concerns about the treatment of the hostages on January 6.” said.
Stefanik added that he supports the full text of the Jan. 6 speech. He said, “While I condemn the violence in the same way I condemn the violence of the BLM riots, it is also important to defend election integrity and election security.”
In his first campaign speech of the year, Biden on Friday accused former President Donald Trump of waging an “assault on democracy” and endangering American institutions, saying, “Donald Trump won’t say what he won’t say. “There will never be political violence. It will never be acceptable in America,” Biden said, adding, “There is no such thing in a democracy. None.”
Stefanik claimed that Biden and the Democratic Party pose a “threat to democracy.”
“We see them trying to remove President Trump from the ballot. We saw this in Colorado and Maine,” she said. “This is suppression of the American people and their ability to vote this November. So it’s the Democratic Party that poses a threat to our democracy.”
Quentin Fawkes, Biden’s deputy campaign manager, responded to Stefanik on “Meet the Press.” Democracy. ”
Stefanik also dismissed the backlash over President Trump’s comments last month in which he referred to immigrants as “poisoning the blood” of the United States.
“This is what the Biden campaign and others say is ‘parroting Adolf Hitler.’ Are you satisfied with former President Trump’s comments?” Welker asked.
After criticizing the media as biased, Stefanik said, “The border crisis is poisoning Americans with fentanyl. People are dying from fentanyl overdoses, including in my district. And you know why? Because Joe Biden’s borders are wide open. …So, yes, I support President Trump.”
In a separate interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) defended President Trump’s “blood poisoning” comments, saying, “That’s not the word I would use. “No,” but insisted he understood President Trump’s “advice.”
“We’ve said it since I first ran for president that we have to secure our borders. The vast majority of Americans understand that need and agree with his position,” Johnson said. I think so.” He added that Trump’s comments were “not hateful” because “what we are trying to advance is America’s first priority.”
Stefanik repeatedly dodged questions about whether she would serve as Trump’s vice president if asked, and declined to say whether she had discussed the vice presidential slot with Trump.
“I am honored to serve in any capacity in the Trump administration. I am proud to be the first member of Congress to support his reelection,” she said. “I am proud to be a strong supporter of President Trump, and he will win this November.”
