Moscow, Jan 4: US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris has accused President Donald Trump of a “bold abuse of power” after media published an audio recording of his call with the Georgia secretary of state, in which the incumbent leader presses the latter to “find” votes to overturn his defeat in the swing state.
“Have you all heard about that recorded conversation? Well, it was certainly the voice of desperation, most certainly that. And it was a bald-faced, bold abuse of power by the president of the United States,” Harris told a drive-in rally in Georgia on Sunday ahead of Senate runoff races in the state, which are set to determine the balance of power in the chamber.
The Washington Post on Sunday published a recording of the January 2 call between Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, in which the former pressed the fellow Republican to recalculate November 3 votes in his favor. The president stated that he wanted to “find 11,780 votes,” maintaining that “there’s no way” he lost Georgia.
According to the transcript, Trump alternately flattered, criticized and even threatened Raffensperger. He, in particular, noted that the purported voter fraud, on which he blames his defeat, is actually a criminal offense, and the official “can’t let that happen.”
Georgia, a traditionally red state, has already recounted its ballots three times, each time revealing that Democrat Joe Biden beat Trump by a narrow margin. As a result, Biden, whose inauguration is slated for January 20, won all 16 electors from Georgia.
Trump refuses to concede his defeat in the November race, alleging voter fraud, but his campaign has so far lost nearly all legal challenges.
(AGENCIES)
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