In an exclusive MSNBC interview with Rachel Maddow, former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton expressed strong criticism of ex-President Donald Trump’s skepticism regarding the 2020 presidential election outcomes. Clinton labeled these doubts as emblematic of an “authoritarian and dictatorial” style of leadership.
During the interview, Clinton emphasized that Trump’s questioning of the election results was a calculated attempt to sow division among Americans. She stressed the importance of restoring public confidence in the electoral process and highlighted the necessity for an unwavering “commitment to upholding fair elections, ensuring unhindered voter participation.”
It’s worth noting that this is not the first time Clinton has raised concerns about election outcomes. In the past, she had also cast doubt on the legitimacy of the 2016 presidential election and previously referred to Trump as an “illegitimate president,” as reported by The Washington Post.
“Democracy needs the trust of the people,” Maddow said. “If bad actors tell us falsely that every election is stolen and that the only way an election is trustworthy is that if they come out on top of it, it tells you something not just about that person, it maybe wounds us as a democracy in a way that’s hard to repair.”
“I think the truth matters,” Clinton responded. “The article you mentioned that I published about the weaponization of loneliness, really does – in my view – point to the larger cultural concerns. Because the lack of trust, the divisiveness, the undermining of faith in ourselves, in each other, respect for our institutions, the rule of law, all of that has been deliberately inculcated within our body politic. There were trends before. We have seen how people become more isolated, less community-oriented, less civically minded, then we see how social media and technology has certainly accelerated a lot of the trends.”
“But the deliberate to divide Americans, to lie to Americans about what was going on in front of their own eyes, what happened on January 6, ‘Don’t believe what you saw, believe what I tell you,’ Those are all the hallmarks of an authoritarian, dictatorial kinds of leaders,” Clinton said.
“So this attack on the elections was the most important step in a long line of efforts undertaken to undermine our trust and our belief in a functioning democracy and our commitment to one person, one vote. Our commitment to carrying on elections, so that people would be enabled to vote, not obstructed,” Clinton said. “Everything that we have worked on to try to make this a more perfect union has been in the target of the anti-democratic forces, unfortunately led by a demagogue for four years in the White House.”
