By JON MICHAEL RAASCH, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT
Donald Trump accused China of infiltrating 220 million American voter files in what he called the biggest election meddling scheme in history in a controversial primetime address to the nation from the White House.
The President also accused Venezuela of being behind a campaign to influence US elections and claimed the ‘deep state’ was part of a widespread cover-up in a speech that revived his allegations of fraud in his 2020 loss to Joe Biden.
The rehashing of the past election upset some Republicans ahead of the speech. As Republicans approach the midterms, some groaned that the President’s focus on the past will not help them secure support for the future.
‘The People’s Republic of China carried out what is believed to be the largest compromise of election data in history, resulting in China’s illicit acquisition of 220 million U.S. voter files,’ the President alleged.
‘That information includes names, addresses, phone numbers, political party preferences, and other sensitive data,’ he added. Trump alleged that a ‘data exploitation unit’ in China was assigned to hijack the data.
‘This data loss presents an unprecedented election security nightmare.’
No evidence of voting machine insecurity or fraud in the 2020 election has been established. Trump’s claims have come under heightened scrutiny; some major broadcast networks like ABC and NBC refused to carry his remarks live.
‘In a rare move, NBC and ABC fake news have both said that they would not cover this speech,’ Trump stated. ‘They know how corrupt our system is and … They and others in the media are part of a plot.’
President Donald Trump announced a primetime speech for Thursday evening where he accused China of accessing 220 million American voter files
Trump was joined by many Cabinet officials as he made the address from the White House’s East Room
Trump alleged that a ‘data exploitation unit’ in China was assigned to hijack the data. Above, he is shown in China with Chinese President Xi Jinping in May
A March 2021 US intelligence report assessed that China considered, but did not deploy, interference operations on the 2020 election.
‘US Spy agencies began learning about the compromise of voter registration files in 2020 when they discovered that tens of millions of voter data, think of that, tens of millions voters’ data in 18 states have been bought, stolen or hacked by China,’ Trump alleged.
Trump claimed that China wanted him to lose the 2020 election. ‘I was wise to them, charged them billions and billions of dollars worth of tariffs,’ Trump said of his first term.
He also announced the release of hundreds of previously classified files about US elections. Many of the files are heavily redacted.
Referencing newly declassified files, Trump said that some documents reveal ‘that members of the deep state’ worked to ‘actively suppress and downplay information about the extent of China’s sinister election rally.’
Despite all of his accusations lobbed against China, the President did not threaten any consequences. President Xi Jinping and his wife are still scheduled to travel to Washington, DC, for a state visit in September following Trump’s trip to China in May.
Referring to another newly unclassified CIA report, Trump said the Nicolas Maduro regime developed methods to digitally alter vote totals in ways that could not be detected, even with an audit, no matter how deep they went.’
The 2021 report also claims that though ex-Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro may have wanted to sway US public opinion against Trump during the 2020 election, he lacked the ability to do so.
‘US Spy agencies began learning about the compromise of voter registration files in 2020 when they discovered that tens of millions of voter data, think of that, tens of millions voters’ data in 18 states have been bought, stolen or hacked by China,’ Trump alleged. Above, Trump and Xi are shown in Beijing in May
Trump also accused ex-dictator of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro of conspiring to meddle in US elections
Included in the White House’s document release was a mention about a Department of Homeland Security review that identified ‘approximately 278,000 non-citizens who are registered to vote in federal elections.’
Though the number may be much higher since the administration alleges that Democrat-led states did not cooperate with the Trump administration and withheld their voter files.
The President has maintained for the better part of a decade that he won the 2020 election against Joe Biden.
Delivering his speech from the White House’s East Room, the President was joined by a number of top Cabinet officials.
Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and more were in attendance, a picture posted by White House Communications Director Steven Cheung shows.
‘The 2020 election was not stolen. We won, and he lost,’ former Vice President Kamala Harris posted on X Thursday night.
The administration has been investigating the circumstances of Trump’s 2020 loss, including the seizure of election records in Fulton County, Georgia, the hotly contested area around Atlanta.
Additionally, the White House unveiled alleged evidence recovered after a Michigan state police raid on voter registration fraud by Democrats in Muskegon.
The administration accuses Biden’s DOJ of slow-walking an investigation into the matter and Trump has told the FBI to investigate.
The President’s fresh allegations about the 2020 election had his MAGA supporters in an uproar about the alleged plot against the Republican.
Despite all of his accusations lobbed against China, the President did not threaten any consequences. President Xi Jinping and his wife are still scheduled to travel to Washington, DC, for a state visit in September following Trump’s trip to China in May
‘This may be the most important Oval Office address since the Cuban Missile Crisis,’ Ohio Republican Senator Bernie Moreno wrote on X. ‘The time for complacency with China is over’
United States Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard was spotted in February after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) executed a search warrant for the Fulton County Election Hub and Operation Center
‘The 2020 election was not stolen. We won, and he lost,’ former Vice President Kamala Harris posted on X Thursday night
‘Data in 18 states have been bought, stolen or hacked by China,’ Trump alleged
‘This may be the most important Oval Office address since the Cuban Missile Crisis,’ Ohio Republican Senator Bernie Moreno wrote on X. ‘The time for complacency with China is over.’
Meanwhile, Democrats bemoaned the address as a tireless rehashing of the Republican’s longstanding gripes and that his claims lacked evidence.
Beyond the White House, a significant portion of Republicans believe the 2020 election was ‘stolen.’
According to an April Reuters poll, nearly two in three Republicans (63 percent) agree that the 2020 contest was stolen from Trump via election fraud.
One in five (21 percent) independents agreed, while just 9 percent of Democrats also said the 2020 election was taken from Trump.
The speech comes amid the backdrop of the administration’s efforts to have the Senate pass the SAVE America Act.
If passed, the measure implements election reforms such as requiring proof of US citizenship to register or update voter registrations for federal elections.
It also would mandate the removal of noncitizens from voter rolls and force states to check federal databases to see if voters are allowed to cast ballots.
The measure has passed the House but has been stalled in the Senate, where it would need 60 votes to pass, including support from a handful of Senate Democrats.
Critics say the bill establishes barriers preventing eligible voters from casting ballots, while proponents argue it secures the electoral process.
The White House announced the address on Monday but gave few details about what the special event would focus on.
The following day, the President teased, ‘What we’re going to talk about Thursday, it doesn’t get bigger because without free and fair elections, you don’t have a country.’
‘We’ll be discussing other things too, but it’s going to be a very big announcement’
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt Thursday said that the US ‘Should have the safest and most secure elections in the history of the world … and what the President will be speaking about tonight will show you that perhaps that is not the case.’
Certain broadcasters were concerned about the speech; ABC and NBC chose to stream the remarks as opposed to broadcasting them on their networks.