Bolton: 'Trump is throwing rocks through windows'

John Bolton spoke against Trump's post-election actions, and Gov. Larry Hogan called Trump's moves to influence electors "completely outrageous."

By MAYA PARTHASARATHY @ Politic.com 11/22/2020 01:07 PM EST​

Former White House national security adviser John Bolton on Sunday blasted President Donald Trump for continuing to contest the Nov. 3 election results, accusing his former boss of mounting political damage.

"I think Trump is throwing rocks through windows," Bolton said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I think he's the political equivalent of a street rioter."

Breaking tradition, Trump has refused to concede to his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, and launched numerous legal challenges to the election results.

At this point, Trump has "given up on the legal issues," Bolton said, pointing out that Trump's campaign has lost almost all of the legal challenges it has brought around the country.

"I think what he's trying to do now is sow enough confusion that he can break through what's called the 'safe harbor' provision in the Electoral College process," Bolton said. "I think he's playing for as much time as he can, hoping that something will happen."

"This is not a legal exercise anymore," Bolton said. "As we saw on Friday, when the Michigan legislators were called to the Oval Office, this is now an exercise of raw political power." [....]

POLITICO Playbook: Republicans serve Trump a heap of reality

By JAKE SHERMAN and ANNA PALMER 11/22/2020 11:33 AM EST

[...] THE WALLS are beginning to close in a bit on President DONALD TRUMP. A FEW HILL REPUBLICANS are inching closer to reality in acknowledging that TRUMP’s presidency is coming to a close.

HOUSE REPUBLICAN CONFERENCE CHAIR LIZ CHENEY of Wyoming set herself apart from her leadership colleagues in telling TRUMP to put up or shut up. It’s a noticeable divergence from KEVIN MCCARTHY, the top House Republican who is one of the president’s staunchest allies. Whether she means it or not, CHENEY has periodically put space between herself and the top of the House GOP leadership. (In our experience, few people distance themselves from their colleagues by mistake.)

-- CHENEY’S STATEMENT: “America is governed by the rule of law. The President and his lawyers have made claims of criminality and widespread fraud, which they allege could impact election results. If they have genuine evidence of this, they are obligated to present it immediately in court and to the American people. I understand that the President has filed more than thirty separate lawsuits. If he is unsatisfied with the results in those lawsuits, then the appropriate avenue is to appeal. If the President cannot prove these claims or demonstrate that they would change the election result, he should fulfill his oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States by respecting the sanctity of our electoral process.”

SEN. PAT TOOMEY (R-Pa.) -- who is not running for re-election -- took it a step further, saying that TRUMP has “exhausted all plausible legal options to challenge the result of the presidential race in Pennsylvania.” TOOMEY congratulated BIDEN and KAMALA HARRIS for being elected. Toomey’s full statement … AP/Harrisburg, Pa.: “In blistering ruling, judge throws out Trump suit in Pa.”

LONGTIME MICHIGAN GOP REP. FRED UPTON to DANA BASH on CNN’s “INSIDE POLITICS”: “You know what? The voters have spoken. No one has come up with any evidence of fraud or abuse. All 83 counties have certified their own election results. Those will be officially tabulated or should be tomorrow. We expect that that process move forward and let the voters, not the politicians speak.”

BASH: “You are in a swing state. When you hear the president's attorney saying she wants to overturn those results, what's your reaction?” UPTON: “You know, the voters spoke. And here again in Michigan it's not a razor thin margin, it's 154,000 votes. You have to let those votes stand. People know the process. They knew our absentee -- I voted absentee. So did my wife. So did my parents. So did my brother and his wife. The process has been in place for a long time. It works. And there's no issues of fraud anywhere. So 154,000 votes, I mean, we had county commission race, my own county commission race was a dead even tie. Then having a draw to see who won because it was exactly the same. 154,000 votes is too many to overcome.”

SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-Texas) said this morning on Twitter -- he loves Twitter! -- that BIDEN should be getting intel briefings. SEN. KEVIN CRAMER (R-N.D.) -- the only Senate Republican on the Sunday shows -- told CHUCK TODD it’s fine for the transition to begin.

CHRIS CHRISTIE said on ABC that TRUMP’S legal team is a “national embarrassment.” CHRISTIE: “Listen. I’ve been a supporter of the president's. I voted for him twice, but elections have consequences, and we cannot continue to act as if something happened here that didn't happen. You have an obligation to present the evidence. The evidence has not been presented, and you must conclude, as Tucker Carlson even concluded the other night, that if you are unwilling to come forward and present the evidence, it must mean the evidence doesn't exist.” [....]

ah very interesting that a proud veteran of the Bush v. Gore Florida Bush boys rioting mob no likey either!

Bill Kristol (hat tip, Peracles on another thread)