The conservative legal non-profit Amistad Project of the Thomas More Society in conjunction with the Voter Integrity Project (VIP) run by Matt Braynard, a former data analyst on Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, have been gathering evidence of alleged voter fraud by the Democratic Party.
Braynard recently claimed that the FBI is showing interest in the VIP's files that are said to have uncovered evidence of "illegal ballots" and people voting in "multiple states”.
Jim Jatras, retired US diplomat and former GOP Senate foreign policy adviser, has shared his views with Sputnik on the investigation by the Amistad Project and VIP, potential voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election, and more.
Sputnik: In addition to statements by President Trump and his supporters, other information about fraud involving mail-in ballots, cases of people receiving multiple ballots etc, the Amistad Project of the Thomas More Society and data analyst Matt Braynard plan to provide data, confirming the interference in the elections of specific persons. Do you think that in order to finally clarify the situation with possible voter fraud there is a chance that an investigation may be conducted at the federal level?
Jim Jatras: There is a chance. The biggest problem that Trump and his supporters have is time. The states are rushing to certify their elections, to name the electors, and to get Biden voted in as present on December 14, when the electors meet. So what this means is that Trump and his people not only have to get an investigation but they have to come up with proof that will be considered credible by the Supreme Court and perhaps by state legislators, to cause them to back off the naming of electors. Now, there's been some progress on this in Pennsylvania, in particular. The question is how strong that progress is and can they really make a serious case in the very short time they have available to them.
Sputnik: If the Amistad Project succeeds in providing evidence of significant election interference, what is the chance that the election results could be revised? How does this situation affect the legitimacy of these elections and the integrity of the entire US electoral system as a whole?
Sputnik: President Trump accused state judges of shirking their responsibilities to hear his campaign's lawsuits and cover the fraud allegation. How justified are these allegations?
Jim Jatras: They're totally justified. Let's take a state like Pennsylvania, which has an elected Supreme Court of seven members. On that Supreme Court, there are five Democrats and two Republicans. He cannot win in that court. It's as simple as that. But his bigger problem is, even if it gets to the US Supreme Court, where he has appointed three of the justices, and there's at least on paper a majority of six Republicans, it's not clear he can win there either. I asked a source very close to the Supreme Court: even if he has a very clear legal question, and the evidence is overwhelming in his favor: what are the chances the court would find on his side? And the answer was "well, under 50%". And that's because the justices know that if Trump does end up winning, we will see riots and burning in our cities like we have never seen before.
Sputnik: Trump also slammed big tech for its alleged censorship. In your opinion, what is the impact of social networks and media on the formation of public opinion about candidates?
Jim Jatras: This is huge, of course, because as we know, from other regime change scenarios, in other countries, one of the most important things you can do is manage the media, manage information and manage expectations. So if, for example, the entire world is being told that in Ukraine, Yanukovich lost, but he stole the election by fraud. And everybody understands that to be the truth, that influences people's expectations and perceptions of everything else that happens later on. And this has been integral to the Biden plan all along, to have himself named as the winner, the President Elect by the media and have everybody's expectation that "Oh, Biden really won". That's why he names his cabinet and all the officials he's appointing, and that sort of thing. So that somehow if Trump comes out on top through legal means he's acting legitimately in people's perceptions.
Sputnik: President Trump decried the FBI and the Justice Department for perceived inaction over allegations of massive voter fraud. How do you assess the possibility of involvement of FBI, DOJ, or any other structures or at least some individuals within these agencies, given long-term turbulent relations between them and the President?
Jim Jatras: There are many good people in the FBI who are very dedicated to the rule of law and to taking action without political bias. Unfortunately, the agency itself, the FBI and the Justice Department has been corrupted. We've seen this the way they treated the whole Russiagate allegations, the naming of the FISA warrants and so forth. Let's be clear, that when we talk about a color revolution, this is being done by the same deep state that has conducted regime changes in other countries. So these are the people who've been behind four years. Boiling the pot about how illegal Trump was in Ukraine or whatever else he did wrong, that he should be impeached.
