‘Live threat to voting rights’: Sen. Jon Ossoff on Trump’s election conspiracy theories

[0:00] Look, if there's one thing that is clear, [0:02] it's that Donald Trump is incapable of letting anything go. [0:05] He does not care that his pursuits are unpopular with the American people [0:08] and a drag on his party's re-election chances in many parts of the country. [0:12] He doesn't care that his efforts have failed over and over again. [0:15] He'll just keep improvising new ways to push his agenda. [0:19] And some of the documents under consideration for release Thursday [0:21] relate to Georgia's 2020 results and the Senate runoffs that followed, [0:26] according to two people familiar with the plans. [0:28] That suggests Trump may use his address to call into question [0:31] the elections of Georgia's Democratic Senators John Ossoff and Raphael Warnock [0:35] ahead of a crucial midterm election in that state. [0:39] How insane is that? [0:41] I wonder what John Ossoff has to say about all of that. [0:44] Joining me now is Democratic Senator John Ossoff of Georgia. [0:46] He's a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee. [0:50] Okay, there's so much to be said here, [0:52] but why do you think Trump is giving this speech and why now? [0:55] So before we get to this matter of the president [0:59] potentially declaring sitting senators illegitimate, [1:02] just take a step back and look at the situation. [1:06] You've got the American public broadly furious with the president [1:10] for war and tariffs and health care cuts [1:13] that are making everything more expensive. [1:16] This palpable anger that he doesn't care about the cost of living crisis. [1:20] He's more concerned with lining his own pockets. [1:22] And so now he's pivoting with the election just a few months away [1:27] from ballroom obsession to election conspiracy theory obsession. [1:33] This is politically disastrous for Republicans in Georgia. [1:37] Remember, the most popular Republican elected official in Georgia [1:40] is Governor Brian Kemp. [1:41] He's popular precisely because he didn't help Donald Trump steal the 2020 election. [1:47] Remember that it's our Republican Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, [1:51] that Donald Trump badgered and bullied to, quote, [1:55] find the votes Donald Trump needed to win a state that Donald Trump had lost. [2:01] Donald Trump tried to commit voter fraud in Georgia in 2021. [2:05] My opponent, Mike Collins, on the other hand, [2:08] is a dyed-in-the-wool election denier, Trump loyalist, Trump puppet, [2:14] who launched his general election campaign reaffirming his commitment to the big lie [2:19] that Donald Trump won the 2020 election. [2:22] And if folks want to help me defeat this MAGA fanatic congressman in Georgia, [2:27] it's electjohn, electjohn.com. [2:30] OK, so let's go back to Georgia, as you just outlined. [2:33] It's as you've lived it. [2:34] He's kind of obsessed with Georgia, Trump is. [2:37] It's also, he just went in and took voting machines from Fulton County, [2:41] sent Tulsi Gabbard in there. [2:42] We all remember her lurking behind the pillars there. [2:46] Why is he obsessed with Georgia? [2:47] Why? [2:48] In my view, he's obsessed with Georgia because he can't get over the fact [2:52] that it was black voters and black political power [2:55] who were instrumental to his defeat in Georgia [2:57] and in a number of crucial battleground states. [2:59] But look, there's talk that he might try to declare [3:02] me and Raphael Warnock illegitimate senators. [3:05] Obviously, the president has no power to do that. [3:08] But he does have the power to try to intimidate people. [3:12] He's demonstrated his will to abuse power. [3:15] I expect him to use whatever he puts out there on Thursday [3:19] as a pretext either for some attempted unconstitutional use [3:24] of federal power to interfere in the election [3:27] or to give his proxies and loyalists in state and local jurisdictions [3:31] some cover for whatever they might attempt [3:34] or to lay the groundwork for challenging the result. [3:37] And the bottom line is that this is a real and live threat [3:40] to voting rights in the United States right now [3:43] and perhaps the most significant we've faced since the 1960s. [3:46] And I'm asking folks again to help me defend voting rights [3:50] and get out the vote in Georgia at electjohn.com. [3:53] So you talked about something I think is really important for people to remember. [3:56] This speech is not just a speech and then it ends. [3:59] This speech is a part of an ongoing effort for him to delegitimize, [4:05] disenfranchise voters and to spread conspiracy theories. [4:08] So let's just dig into what you just talked about, about what could be next, [4:11] because you've been paying close attention to this. [4:13] He gives this speech. [4:14] First of all, are you worried that he's going to mention Georgia [4:16] and try to push conspiracy theories out there, potentially? [4:19] Look, his obsession with Georgia hurts Georgia Republicans. [4:25] I mean, this is not a political winner for Congressman Mike Collins. [4:28] Mike Collins, if he knows what's good for him, [4:31] he already has to defend voting to double health insurance premiums [4:34] for a million Georgians. [4:35] I doubt he wants to spend the next four months [4:37] dealing with Donald Trump's conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. [4:41] But putting the politics aside, [4:43] I'm concerned about the defense of voting rights in Georgia. [4:46] I'm concerned about what Donald Trump abusing his federal power may do [4:52] to try to interfere with the process or cast doubt on the results. [4:57] And that's why I'm asking people to help me to defend voting rights [5:00] and to make sure that we can empower every eligible voter in Georgia [5:04] to navigate whatever obstacles are put in their path [5:07] or whatever misinformation they're served. [5:09] So where does it go after Thursday? [5:12] Because this is important for people to understand. [5:13] This is just part of laying, could be, [5:16] we don't know what's in the speech exactly, [5:18] but everything we've seen from reporting could be laying the predicate here [5:22] to do further investigations, to seize more ballots. [5:27] Where do you think it goes? [5:29] I think, again, I think that he is trying to create some pretext [5:32] for an abuse of federal power, [5:34] trying to create cover for state and local allies [5:36] to get up to no good in those jurisdictions [5:38] and try to lay the groundwork [5:40] for some kind of potential challenge to the results. [5:42] That's what I think his goal is. [5:44] But I think they're divided within the White House [5:46] and the administration on this. [5:48] And here's what I would say. [5:49] If you're working in the Trump administration right now, [5:52] if you're, say, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, [5:55] and you see what's about to happen, [5:57] that they're going to selectively declassify some nonsense [6:00] to try to lay the foundation for some kind of mischief, [6:03] this is the last chance to jump ship and speak out [6:06] because you will be forever tainted [6:08] by your association with these kinds of shenanigans. [6:11] You talked about, I just played a clip [6:14] at the beginning of the show. [6:15] This is the glamour of the Senate [6:17] where you're asked by reporters questions [6:19] in a parking lot. [6:20] I think that must have been in a parking lot. [6:22] But you talked about having conversations [6:23] with your Republican colleagues [6:25] who think, and I don't want to put, [6:28] you basically said that Trump has lost it [6:30] around this particular topic. [6:32] Tell us more about, [6:33] I know you're not going to name names, [6:34] you're welcome to, [6:35] about those conversations. [6:37] What do Republicans tell you privately [6:39] about this particular topic, [6:41] this conspiracy theory pushing? [6:42] Let me say, it's not even new [6:44] that in private conversations, [6:46] a huge number of my Republican colleagues [6:48] have contempt for the president. [6:52] They view him as somebody [6:54] who's adverse to their own interests. [6:55] They know that he's torpedoing GOP chances [6:58] in these midterm elections. [6:59] But I don't think they're going to do anything about it. [7:02] We should not hold out hope [7:05] for a sudden outbreak of courage and integrity [7:09] among elected Republicans in Washington. [7:13] He still has the GOP in his grip, [7:16] and in particular, [7:17] his most dedicated loyalists [7:19] like Congressman Mike Collins, [7:21] my opponent who is a known and notorious [7:23] bigot and anti-Semite [7:25] who is only a congressman [7:27] because his daddy was a congressman, [7:28] who Brian Kemp worked so hard [7:31] to try to deny the Republican nomination [7:34] because he's so extreme, [7:36] because he's so unpalatable, [7:37] and because as Donald Trump spirals [7:40] into conspiracy land, [7:42] Congressman Mike Collins [7:43] is going to follow him right along. [7:45] You sit on the Senate Intelligence Committee. [7:47] You're going to have the opportunity [7:48] to question Jay Clayton in a hearing tomorrow. [7:52] That feels quite awkward for Jay Clayton [7:54] given this speech on Thursday, [7:55] not our problem. [7:57] What are you going to push him on? [7:58] What are you going to press him on [7:59] given all of this, [7:59] everything we've discussed? [8:00] Look, the office of the Director [8:02] of National Intelligence right now [8:04] is tainted. [8:05] It's tainted by Tulsi Gabbard's misconduct [8:09] when she went down to Georgia [8:11] and, in her own words, [8:12] at the request of the president, [8:13] oversaw the execution of a search warrant [8:15] on a sensitive election site. [8:18] A massive abuse of that office. [8:21] It's tainted by Bill Pulte [8:22] and what Bill Pulte is doing [8:24] in that office right now. [8:26] And I sat down today with Jay Clayton [8:28] to talk about his nomination, [8:29] and I'll tell you candidly [8:31] that he said nothing [8:33] that allayed my concerns [8:35] that he would be yet another puppet, [8:39] that he said nothing [8:40] that demonstrated any kind of will [8:42] or any kind of real commitment [8:43] to the independence that we need [8:45] from the nation's senior [8:46] most intelligence officer. [8:48] He'll have another chance [8:49] to make his case tomorrow in the hearing. [8:51] Did you ask him about [8:52] this potential of releasing [8:54] all of this, [8:55] declassifying all of this information [8:57] in advance of Thursday? [8:58] You can rest assured [8:59] that tomorrow I [9:01] and a number of Democrats [9:02] on the Intelligence Committee [9:03] will be pressing him [9:04] on related issues. [9:05] Senator John Ossoff, [9:06] thank you as always. [9:07] Thanks for being here.