PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) – It looks like former President Donald Trump is demanding Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey “provide large-scale security” for the election audit that’s underway at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix. According to a statement from Save America, “large-scale security” means either the National Guard or state police.
The audit, which is being done at the behest of Arizona Senate Republicans, has been a source of controversy for some time. Arizona Democrats filed a lawsuit to keep the audit from moving forward. On Friday, a Maricopa County judge ordered a temporary pause if the Dems posted a $1 million bond to cover the potential costs of the delay. They did not.
A statement from Arizona Democratic Party Chair Raquel Teran called the $1 million bond “laughable,” citing the lack of transparency as to the actual cost of the audit.
Although the audit is going ahead — for now — auditors are being required to produce policies, procedures, and training materials on how they do the audit, attorney Roopali Desai explained. Another hearing on the matter is scheduled for late Monday morning.
Friday’s hearing came on the heels of an Arizona’s Family Investigates report that showed a dearth of security at the State Fairgrounds, where Maricopa County’s counting equipment and the ballots from the 2020 election are being kept for the audit. That report, in part, prompted Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs to send a letter to Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich requesting an investigation into the security of the audit, which involved a hand recount of 2.1 million ballots cast in Maricopa County.
Now it appears that Trump, who has long made unsubstantiated claims of widespread election fraud, is weighing in. He was critical of Ducey after the Arizona’s election results were certified and our electoral votes contributed to Trump’s loss to President Joe Biden in November 2020. Arizona was one of the several states Trump claimed to have won. When Ducey certified the results for Biden, Trump took to Twitter. Ducey was in his crosshairs despite the Arizona governor’s four-year record of solidly supporting the then president. “Republicans will long remember!” Trump tweeted.
The statement regarding securing Arizona’s election audit came from Save America and was tweeted by Jenna Ellis, who was the senior legal adviser and counsel to Trump when he was in office. As reported by Newsweek and The Hill, the statement reads:
The Republican Party is demanding that Governor Ducey of Arizona immediately provide large-scale security for the brave American Patriots doing the Forensic Audit of the 2020 Presidential Election. Governor Ducey will be held fully responsible for the safety of those involved. State police or National Guard must be immediately sent out for protection. The Democrats do not want to have this information revealed, and they will do anything to stop it. Governor Ducey must finally act!
Arizona’s Family is reaching out to Ducey’s office for comment.
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