More than 16 Republican attorneys general in states that President Donald Trump won in this year's presidential election signed onto Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's lawsuit asking the U.S. Supreme Court to throw out the election results in four battleground states that Biden won: Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin. But some on the right are attacking the lawsuit as deeply flawed, including radio host/blogger Erick Erickson — who has been a Trump supporter this year — and Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden.
Erickson is a far-right social conservative and evangelical Christian fundamentalist who endorsed Trump's reelection campaign, not a Never Trumper, a libertarian or one of the people on the right who crossed party lines and supported former Vice President Joe Biden. But on his blog, Erickson slams Paxton's lawsuit unmercifully, denouncing it as "one of the stupidest bits of performative leg humping we have seen in the last five years."
"These attorneys general are willing to beclown themselves and their states all to get in good with the losing presidential candidate," Erickson argues. "The suit is absurd on its face. These states seek to interfere in the internal affairs of other states when those states are not actually electing the president, but allowing their voters to choose members of the Electoral College. Were this to succeed, which it will not, the states will start suing each other at every election as a bit of theater."
Erickson goes on to list a variety of reasons why the lawsuit is "absurd" — for example, "Texas alleges the other states changed election laws due to the pandemic without the legislature's blessing. You know one state not being sued that did that? Texas."
Erickson notes that the states that have joined the lawsuit "allege it is illegal to count ballots received after Election Day" — even though "several of the states making that claim also do that." And Erickson points out that the lawsuit "argues (that) a sign of voter fraud is that it is not likely Trump 2016 voters would vote for Biden in 2020."
According to Erickson, "Texas could not even get its solicitor general — the man who argues on behalf of the state before the Supreme Court — to sign onto the lawsuit. That's how frivolous it is."
He added:
I'm really tired of the Republican Party beclowning itself for a losing candidate out of fear for that candidate's voters. That is all this is and delusions of fools notwithstanding, despite all sorts of stupid arguments being wrapped in pomp and "equal protection" phraseology, the election is over and Joe Biden will be President-Elect officially next week.
Meanwhile, in Idaho — a deep red where Trump defeated Biden by 30% — the state's attorney general, Wasden, has no interest in joining Paxton's lawsuit.
In an official statement this week, Wasden said, "I've spent substantial time reviewing Texas' bill of complaint so I could fully understand and consider the legal arguments being made. After doing so, I am declining to join this effort."
The Idaho attorney general continued, "As I have done since the day I took my oath of office — in which I pledged to uphold and protect both the Idaho and U.S. constitutions — I strive to protect the State of Idaho's legal interests. As is sometimes the case, the legally correct decision may not be the politically convenient decision. But my responsibility is to the State of Idaho and the rule of law."
Wasden made a states' rights argument in his statement, emphasizing, "This decision is necessary to protect Idaho's sovereignty. As attorney general, I have significant concerns about supporting a legal argument that could result in other states litigating against legal decisions made by Idaho's legislature and governor. Idaho is a sovereign state and should be free to govern itself without interference from any other state. Likewise, Idaho should respect the sovereignty of its sister states."