Intimidation of election officials by supporters of Donald Trump believing his "Big Lie" of election fraud was illustrated on Monday in Wisconsin.
Republican state Sen. Kathleen Bernier, who chairs Wisconsin's Senate Elections Committee, suggested she would be armed to protect herself during an upcoming hearing with former Supreme Court Justice Michael Gablemn, who is conducting widely-panned partisan investigation into the 2020 election.
"GOP state Sen. Kathy Bernier says Gableman is 'jazzing up' people who don't know what they're talking about regarding elections," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel correspondent Patrick Marley reported.
"Mr. Gableman is coming to my county and I will attend that meeting along with my concealed carry permit, to be honest," Bernier said.
Bernier was speaking alongside former Obama White House counsel Bob Bauer and longtime GOP lawyer Ben Ginsberg. The two are the co-chairs of the new Election Official Legal Defense Network.
On Friday, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel published an op-ed by the two under the headline, "Intimidation of election officials in Wisconsin has to stop. It is corrosive to our democracy."
"The recent pattern of attempted intimidation of state and local election officials, combined with attempts to inject partisan influence over the casting and counting of votes, has thrust Wisconsin into the harsh spotlight of a destructive nationwide trend which, if successful, will corrode public faith in our election process," they warned.
Here is Marley's full thread:
Bernier is the chairwoman of the Senate Elections Committee. \n\nShe is joined by Bob Bauer, the former White House counsel under Obama, and Ben Ginsberg, an attorney who for decades represented Republican candidates and political committees.— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639416200
Ginsberg makes a similar point, saying there is the danger of taking away election duties "from the pros" and giving them "to the pols."— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639416872
"What's the Republican end game?" Ginsberg asks, saying he doesn't think the attacks on elections will work well politically for Republicans.— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639417177
He cites as an example the Republican losses of Senate runoffs in January in Georgia.— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639417272
"I hope we're not in a vicious cycle that has no good ending," Ginsberg says.— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639417482
.@mastersonmv praises Meagan Wolfe, saying she is a nonpartisan professional. Wolfe is the director of the Wisconsin Elections Commission.— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639417920
GOP state Sen. Kathy Bernier says Gableman is "jazzing up" people who don't know what they're talking about regarding elections.\n\n"Mr. Gableman is coming to my county and I will attend that meeting along with my concealed carry permit, to be honest," says @KathleenBernie8.— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639418626
Bernier said she has faced a lot of political pressure but doesn't mind because she believes she has the truth on her side. \n\nShe said Republicans are false election claims to try to excite their base -- a move she calls despicable.— Patrick Marley (@Patrick Marley) 1639420162
