Trump Calls For Federal Investigation Based On His Debunked Belief That There Was Massive Voter Fraud In The November Election

Trump Vows “Major Investigation” Into Nonexistent Voter Fraud. President Trump on Twitter “vowed to open an inquiry to reveal people who are registered to vote in multiple states or who remain on voting rolls long after they have died” based on his “complaint that millions of people voted illegally, depriving him of a popular-vote majority,” according to The New York Times. The Times also noted, “Fraudulent voting happens in tiny, sporadic episodes that have no impact on the outcome of elections.” From the January 25 article:

President Trump intends to move forward with a major investigation of voter fraud that he says cost him the popular vote, White House officials said Wednesday, despite bipartisan condemnation of his allegations and the conclusion of Mr. Trump’s own lawyers that the election was “not tainted.”

In his first days in the Oval Office, Mr. Trump has renewed his complaint that millions of people voted illegally, depriving him of a popular-vote majority. In two Twitter posts early Wednesday morning, the president vowed to open an inquiry to reveal people who are registered to vote in multiple states or who remain on voting rolls long after they have died.

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But voting officials in both parties across the country said the answer to those questions is already clear: Fraudulent voting happens in tiny, sporadic episodes that have no impact on the outcome of elections. It is virtually impossible, several state election officials said, that millions of people voted illegally in last year’s presidential contest.

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David Becker, who for six years was in charge of the election initiative for the Pew Center on the States, said that voter rolls often had out-of-date information, but that there was virtually no evidence that many of those names were used to vote illegally.

“It does exist, but it happens in very, very small numbers and nothing like what is claimed by the president,” Mr. Becker said. [The New York Times, 1/25/17]

Studies Have Repeatedly Found No Evidence Of Massive Voter Fraud. Multiple experts and studies have found no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the U.S. A Mother Jones examination of studies in 2012 said they concluded that “the rate of voter fraud in American elections is close to zero.” [Media Matters, 1/25/17] 

Websites That Regularly Publish Fake News Echo Trump’s False Claims of Massive Voter Fraud

Angry Patriot: “I Hope That This Investigation Goes Through Because There Were Plenty Of Things That Happened To Point To Voting Fraud.” Fake news purveyor Angry Patriot wrote, “I hope that this investigation goes through because there were plenty of things that happened to point to voting fraud,” claiming that “Democrat operatives confess[ed] to bussing illegal voters” and that there were “deceased voters” voting. The “bussing” claim seems to be based on a video from discredited conservative activist James O’Keefe, and “pre-filled out ballots for Hillary Clinton” is presumably based on a debunked claim about ballots in Ohio. Studies have also found no proof of dead people casting ballots. From the article:

Trump announced Wednesday on Twitter that he will be asking for a “major investigation” into the voting fraud allegations that were widespread during the election, via Fox News.

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Of course, people are opposing Trump’s claims of voting fraud. The Democrats are, of course, but even House Speaker Paul Ryan has stated there is “no evidence” to back up these allegations. However, there have been too many incidents for there to be “no proof.”

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I hope that this investigation goes through because there were plenty of things that happened to point to voting fraud. The leaked videos of Democrat operatives confessing to bussing illegal voters, the deceased voters, the pre-filled out ballots for Hillary Clinton, the faulty voting machines—one way or another, our voting system needs a reboot. [Angry Patriot, accessed 1/26/17; Snopes.com, 10/6/16, 10/18/16; Media Matters, 12/14/16, 1/25/17]

Before It’s News: “There Is Fraud Indeed,” And Democrats “Were Caught Planning And Executing Fraud At Voting Places.” Fake news purveyor Before It’s News suggested that Trump’s investigation call has credibility because “Hundreds of cases of voting fraud have been registered across the country,” which “does confirm that there is fraud indeed.” The website relied on the video from discredited activist O’Keefe showing supposed planning of voter fraud, and pushed the debunked claims that California and New York gave licenses to undocumented immigrants to help them vote. From the January 25 article:

Mainstream corporate media asked for it as a challenge to the recently elected president, and now, Donald Trump has accepted the challenge. US President, Donald J. Trump announced via his Twitter account that he will call for an in-depth investigation into what he calls voting fraud and that depending on the results of such investigation, he may change electoral laws to strengthen voting safety.

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While mainstream corporate media have denied that voter fraud existed during the last election, the truth is that it isn’t a myth. Hundreds of cases of voting fraud have been registered across the country and although they may not amount to millions of people – that is what Trump intends to prove – it does confirm that there is fraud indeed. During the primary season, people associated to the Democratic Party were caught planning and executing fraud at voting places. Members of the party confessed on tape that people were bussed from one place to the other to have them vote twice or more times in favor of a particular candidate. In states such as New York and California, mayors were found to be giving IDs to illegal immigrants so they could go and register to vote. In many US states it is not necessary to show proof of identification or residence before entering a voting booth. These conditions facilitate the commission of irregularities in the voting process. [Before It’s News, 1/25/17; Snopes.com, 2/22/16, 10/18/16; Media Matters, 9/19/14, 12/14/16]

TruthFeed: Obama Called For “Illegals” To Vote In Election. In a January 25 article about Trump’s call for a voter-fraud investigation, fake news purveyor TruthFeed pushed the debunked claims that “California issues illegals drivers licenses at a place where Americans register to vote” and that former President Barack Obama “basically greenlit illegals voting in the 2016 election during an interview.” The Obama video is actually a deceptively edited clip from Fox News of an interview where Obama discussed the rights of Hispanic Americans, not undocumented immigrants, to vote. [TruthFeed, 1/25/17; Snopes.com, 2/22/16; Mediaite, 11/7/16; Media Matters, 12/14/16]

Mad World News: “Trump’s Claims Are Not As Far-Fetched As The Liberal Media Make Them Out To Be.” Fake news purveyor Mad World News backed up Trump’s claims as “not as far-fetched as the liberal media make them out to be,” pointing to a 2014 voter fraud study that was criticized by experts for its methodology and conclusions, and which a co-author has conceded is flawed. Added the website, “The only reason liberals are upset about Trump carrying out an investigation on voter fraud is because they know they support the party that depends upon it.” From the January 25 article:

In a monumental effort to protect our constitutional rights, Trump announced on Twitter Wednesday that he will be pursuing a major investigation into the rampant voter fraud that Democrats used in a failed attempt to get Hillary Clinton elected, Breitbart reports.

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Trump’s claims are not as far-fetched as the liberal media make them out to be. In a 2014 study, it was estimated that 14 percent of illegals in 2008 and 2010 were registered to vote. In addition, an estimated 6.4 percent of illegals were said to have voted in 2008 and 2.2 percent voted in 2010. Considering that 2016’s election was by far one of the most heated, it’s safe to say that there would be an even larger engagement of illegal voters.

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The only reason liberals are upset about Trump carrying out an investigation on voter fraud is because they know they support the party that depends upon it. They are fearful of losing elections, especially after realizing that their savior, Hillary, couldn’t pull off a win regardless of how many underhanded tactics she used. In short, these leftists wouldn’t be denouncing a simple investigation if they truly thought their party had done nothing wrong. [Mad World News, 1/25/17; The New York Times, 1/26/17; Media Matters, 10/28/14, 12/14/16]

Prntly: Trump Will Inspect “The Widespread Voter Fraud” In The 2016 Election. Fake news purveyor Prntly wrote that Trump was “unleash[ing] the powers of the Federal Government to inspect the widespread voter fraud in the 2016 election.” The website claimed that the “fake news [mainstream media]” would “deny or cover up the results” and pushed the deceptively edited Obama video on Hispanics voting. From the January 25 article:

The media is freaking out after President Trump unleashed the powers of the Federal Government to inspect the widespread voter fraud in the 2016 election.

Obama encouraged illegals to vote in a video, and we have that tape here[.]

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But let’s see how unsubstantiated this is when evidence appears.

Expect the fake news MSM to deny or cover up the results. [Prntly, 1/25/17; Mediaite, 11/7/16; Media Matters, 12/14/16]

Nearly All Of These Fake News Purveyors Pull In Revenue From Google AdSense

Every Fake News-Purveying Website Listed Here Except Mad World News Uses Google’s Advertising Network. Angry Patriot, Before It’s News, TruthFeed, and Prntly continue to use Google’s advertising service, Google AdSense, despite an announced ban from Google on websites that post “misrepresentative content.” A Media Matters analysis in December found 24 websites violating the ban, and another analysis on January 26 found all of the websites listed here except Mad World News still use Google AdSense. [Media Matters, 12/14/16, 1/12/17; Angry Patriot, accessed 1/26/17; Before It’s News, accessed 1/27/16; TruthFeed, accessed 1/26/17; Prntly; accessed 1/26/17]