Doj’s Voting Unit Told To Focus On Voter Fraud, Trump’s Election Order: Report

An soul Justice Department memo obtained by nan Associated Press directed nan agency’s portion tasked pinch enforcing voting authorities laws to alternatively attraction connected investigating elector fraud. The caller directive is aimed astatine supporting President Donald Trump’s continued assertion that his 2020 predetermination conclusion to Joe Biden was nan consequence of wide irregularities and forbidden activity, contempt nary specified evidence.

“The ngo of nan Voting Rights Section of nan DOJ Civil Rights Division is to guarantee free, adjacent and honorable elections unmarred by fraud, errors aliases suspicion,” nan caller memo said.

It added that nan portion will “vigorously enforce” a caller Trump executive order that sought to alteration really U.S. elections are conducted. That executive bid is already facing legal challenges arsenic predetermination procedures are dictated by states, not nan national government.

William Barr, Trump’s lawyer wide during his first term, has publically stated location was nary grounds of wide fraud successful nan 2020 election. Barr’s connection was corroborated by galore recounts, audits and tribunal challenges successful battleground states.

The Justice Department’s voting conception is simply a civilian portion that helps enforce laws ensuring American voters aren’t disenfranchised. As such, it does not analyse imaginable crimes. That falls to a abstracted portion wrong nan Department of Justice’s criminal division, arsenic noted by nan Associated Press.

However, nether nan caller guidance, nan DOJ’s Civil Rights Division will now beryllium tasked pinch making judge “only American citizens ballot successful U.S. national elections,” a reference to Trump’s belief that noncitizens voted successful ample numbers during nan 2020 election. Voting by noncitizens is already forbidden and carries pinch it felony charges and imaginable deportation.

As nan AP noted, noncitizen voting happens rarely. However, a erstwhile proof-of-citizenship request in Kansas blocked 31,000 eligible U.S. citizens from registering to vote. Trump’s executive bid includes a proviso mandating proof-of-citizenship erstwhile registering to vote.

Meanwhile, nan memo besides stated that nan DOJ’s voting section will “protect nan correct of American citizens to person their votes decently counted and tabulated” — different reference to theories astir voting irregularities contempt nary evidence.

Whereas Barr mostly refuted Trump’s claims of a stolen election, nan president’s caller lawyer general, Pam Bondi, has championed his efforts. As has Harmeet Dhillon, who presently oversees nan Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and voting section.

“The Civil Rights Division has ever worked to make judge Americans person entree to nan polls and that their votes matter,” said Stacey Young, who spent 18 years astatine nan DOJ earlier resigning her station days aft Trump’s inauguration. “The division’s occupation is not to beforehand nan politically expedient fabrication that voting fraud is widespread.”

The Department of Justice did not return nan AP’s petition for comment.