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Sanders and Schumer call on McConnell to hold hearings to fight election conspiracy theories

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Stay Updated on Developing StoriesView in AppBy Gregory Krieg, CNN(CNN) Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York are calling on Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to create a new bipartisan committee focused on election integrity and schedule hearings to reassure Americans over a process President Donald Trump has repeatedly sought to undermine.There is growing anxiety among Democrats, and some Republicans, that Trump will not only continue to sow doubt over the legitimacy of the coming election but throw the subsequent count into chaos by declaring victory before all the votes can be tallied, including the millions that will arrive by mail.In a letter to McConnell, Sanders and Schumer quote back the Kentucky senator's own words, in which he attested to the reliability of mail-in voting by citing its successes in Oregon, Washington and Colorado, which have been using the system for years.See moreTrump has repeatedly questioned the validity of mail-in voting, promoted conspiracy theories questioning election security, called on supporters to act and suggested that the absence of a clear result by the evening of November 3 would in some way cast doubt on the eventual outcome. Key allies in powerful positions, like Attorney General Bill Barr, have followed suit. Barr has persisted in that ballots received by mail would somehow strip the sender of their privacy -- ignoring well-established safeguards.By escalating the matter now, Sanders and Schumer are responding to growing concern, in partisan and nonpartisan spaces, that Americans are not adequately prepared for the potential of a longer-than-usual wait for results or Trump's willingness to short-circuit the democratic process if he smells defeat."Democrats and Republicans in Congress must come together to ensure that we have a free and fair election where every vote is cast and counted without intimidation," Sanders told CNN, "where no one has to put his or her health in danger to cast a ballot, and where we have full confidence in the results."The proposed hearings would invite a cross-section of election officials from across the country to testify to the security and reliability of mail-in, early- and in-person voting -- subjects on which Sanders and Schumer, again, referenced McConnell's own words."Despite the clear security of our vote-by-mail system, some have continued to undermine it with unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud," they wrote. "As you have correctly said, people 'can vote early, you can vote on Election Day, or you can drop it in the mail,' and that voters should 'not worry about your vote not counting.'"The minority leader and Sanders, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, also want more detailed discussion about the fraught hours, or days, after the polls close and a real-time watch of the election horse race potentially swings from one candidate to another."We know a number of states may well be counting ballots for a period of time after Election Day, and that those votes may be determinative in this election," the senators wrote to McConnell. "To avoid disinformation, conspiracy theories, and suspicion about results, we must understand the likely timeline for this process."The letter goes on to reference the recent war games-style preparations conducted by a group called the Transition Integrity Project, a bipartisan gathering of operatives and academics that made headlines when some of the outcomes of their exercises -- including "" -- were reported on in late July."A bipartisan group of experts and officials have studied multiple scenarios where the outcome of the election was not immediately known. Some of these scenarios resulted in unrest and even violence," Sanders and Schumer wrote, suggesting the Senate should elevate similar discussions and familiarize the public with the uncertainties ahead. "We would like to hear from the most knowledgeable people in the country as to how we can do everything possible to make sure that the election and the period afterward is secure and peaceful."Outbrain© 2022 Cable News Network. A Warner Media Company. All RightsReserved.| |

Stay Updated on Developing StoriesView in AppBy Gregory Krieg, CNN(CNN) Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York are calling on Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to create a new bipartisan committee focused on election integrity and schedule hearings to reassure Americans over a process President Donald Trump has repeatedly sought to undermine.There is growing anxiety among Democrats, and some Republicans, that Trump will not only continue to sow doubt over the legitimacy of the coming election but throw the subsequent count into chaos by declaring...

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Gregory Krieg

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Sanders and Schumer call on McConnell to hold hearings to fight election conspiracy theories

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