May 2, 2021

Cindy McCain to Republicans: “The Election Is Over”

She has no patience for Trump’s fantasy of overturning Arizona’s election results.

Cindy McCain wants Republicans to get over Donald Trump’s 2020 loss. When asked on Sunday about an ongoing Republican-backed election audit in Arizona, the wife of late Republican Sen. John McCain called the ordeal “ludicrous.” “The election is over. Biden won,” she told CNN’s Jake Tapper on State of the Union. “I know many of them don’t like the outcome. But, you know, elections have consequences.”

McCain’s distaste for Trump is no secret. She endorsed Biden in 2020—the first time she’s ever voted for a Democrat—saying she had “had enough” of Trump’s insults, specifically citing reports that he had called injured and fallen soldiers “losers” and “suckers.” The former president also repeatedly attacked her husband before and after his death.

In addition to other tactics, the firm leading the audit, a Florida-based company called Cyber Ninjas, is reportedly using ultraviolet lights to inspect ballots in Maricopa County. Trump, holed up at Mar-a-Lago, has taken an interest in the effort, the Washington Post reports:

Ensconced at his private club in Florida, Trump asks aides for updates about the process multiple times a day, advisers said, expressing particular interest in the use of UV lights to scrutinize Maricopa’s ballots — a method that has bewildered election experts, who say it could damage the votes.

“He talks about it constantly,” said one person who recently visited Mar-a-Lago and listened to Trump discuss the recount for about 45 minutes, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations.

Unfortunately for Trump, it’s not likely the audit will expose any mass voter fraud. Previous independent ballot reviews led by the state and Maricopa County have confirmed the election’s integrity.

According to Cyber Ninjas CEO Doug Logan, a reported promoter of election conspiracy theories, the company will release a full report of the audit within 60 days, though officials have said there is “no deadline” for the audit.

 

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