With Democrat Gavin Newsom ahead in the California recall polls, Fox News is launching another Big Lie about (non-existent) voter fraud in order to wage another war on democracy when the outcome doesn’t suit its political aims.
Media Matters did a good roundup that includes some of Fox’s foremost propagandists casting doubt that Newsom would legitimately prevail in one of the country’s most heavily Democratic states: Tucker Carlson, Maria Bartiromo, Tomi Lahren and Rachel Campos-Duffy, e.g.
The stage has been set since at least August 22, Media Matters found, when “one of Fox News’ most shameless and vitriolic promoters of election denialism,” Newt Gingrich, appeared on Bartiromo’s Sunday Morning Futures program. In a segment reminiscent of their previous false claims about the 2020 election, the two painted what Media Matters aptly described as “a lurid picture of vast election fraud in California.”
GINGRICH: Frankly, what people ought to look at is this is going to be an election where they go all-out to steal the referendum. …
And I think people should look carefully at this, because there's pretty good evidence that, if Newsom is in a straight, honest count, he probably — he has a good chance of losing. But if they can stuff every ballot box in California and they can cheat in every way possible — and so [Vice President Kamala Harris is] part of raising the money to pay for the cheating. I mean, it's just that simple. It's not complicated.
BARTIROMO: That is so extraordinary.
GINGRICH: Yes.
BARTIROMO: And that is the reason we continue to focus on all of these audits going on across the country. We want fair and free elections.
The irony is that Fox is doing everything to sabotage fair and free elections by baselessly claiming there’s voter fraud. In fact, the network and Bartiromo are being sued for billions over their phony allegations of fraud in the 2020 election.
But propagandists gotta propagandize. So here’s Fox host Tomi Lahren, whom I have described as the millennial version of Ann Coulter, but with less charm and less wit, telling Fox's Outnumbered viewers, “The only thing that will save Gavin Newsom is voter fraud. So as they say, stay woke, pay attention to the voter fraud going on in California, because it's going to have big consequences not only for that state, but for upcoming elections.”
In fact, as John Amato pointed out on Crooks and Liars (where I am a contributor), all the polling since August 4 shows Newsom ahead.
But not one of Lahren’s four cohosts challenged her dishonesty. Instead, cohost #LyingKayleighMcEnany chuckled with approval.
You can watch Lahren try to sabotage the California recall election below, from the September 7, 2021 Outnumbered.
And if you live in California and are registered to vote, MAKE SURE TO DO SO AND VOTE NO, unless you want Larry Elder in a position to flip the U.S. Senate and more.