Trump tries to pressure new Alabama senator Tommy Tuberville to object to Electoral College results

President Donald Trump spent Thursday night and Friday morning trying to pressure incoming Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville into objecting to the Electoral College results, which would hold up, but not change the results of the 2020 election. 

In one tweet, Trump called Tuberville a ‘great champion and man of courage’ in another he said the move would make the former Auburn football coach ‘more popular than ever before – a hero!’

‘More Republican Senators should follow his lead,’ Trump urged. ‘We had a landslide victory, and then it was swindled away from the Republican Party – but we caught them. Do something!’   

President Donald Trump is pressuring incoming Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville to join Rep. Mo Brooks’ effort to challenge Electoral College vote tallies in key swing states when Congress validates the 2020 election result

Trump is pressuring Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville to challenge the Electoral College vote count in key swing states on January 6 – a move that will delay the final sign-off of the election, but won’t change the result 

Tommy Tuberville (second from left) will only be in the Senate for three days and go against the wishes of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (center) should he joined Rep. Mo Brooks’ effort to object to certain states’ Electoral College results 

The president did not win the 2020 election and he and his lawyers were never able to produce any evidence of the widespread voter fraud that he’s complained to supporters about for more than a month. 

Trump is looking toward the January 6 meeting of Congress where lawmakers will validate the Electoral College count – the final hurdle before President-elect Joe Biden is sworn-in on January 20. 

During that session, held in the House of Representatives chamber and chaired by Vice President Mike Pence, in his role as president of the Senate, states’ Electoral College counts can be challenged, as long as one House member and one senator come forward. 

Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks has already volunteered to challenge the results from key swing states. 

He just needs a senator to join the effort. 

Tuberville will be just three days into his Congressional tenure should he back the scheme. 

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell congratulated Biden for his win on the Senate floor Tuesday and both publicly and privately warned Republican senators not to challenge the Electoral College count.  

Speaking to Yellowhammer News, Tuberville said he was undecided on how to proceed. 

‘I want to do what’s best for President Trump and the people of Alabama and the people of this country,’ Tuberville told the outlet Thursday. ‘They asked me, “Are you going to support President Trump?” And, of course, I’m always going to support President Trump. He’s the best president of my lifetime and has done more for the people of this country and the state of Alabama than anybody. But we want to make sure we do the right thing.’  

Campaigning with GOP Senate candidates, Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, Tuberville told Yellowhammer News that he’s hearing from voters a lot of concerns about fraud – echoing Trump’s false claims.    

‘Now that I’m off the road I’m going to start doing my due diligence,’ Tuberville said. ‘It’s not like you have to make your mind up in the next 24 hours. I’ll probably meet with Mo Brooks and get his side of it.’    

On January 6 if there is a successful challenge, lawmakers in the House and Senate would go back to their respective chambers to debate the challenge, which only takes a majority vote to overrule. 

In the House, that won’t be a problem – as Democrats have the majority. 

In the Senate, Biden is expected not to have a problem there either despite the GOP majority, as a number of Republicans have already indicated they’d vote in favor of the current Electoral College vote count.