Trump has already rigged the race to crush Democratic voters and ensure a Republican victory—but Democrats don’t want to hear it
The polls confirm a growing surge of voter enthusiasm for Democrats. Are they wrong? No. They may just not be relevant.
While Democrats deliriously high-five themselves at the release of each new favorable poll, Trump has been diligently rigging the electoral process to ensure that Republicans keep control of Congress (and incidentally keep him from being impeached, convicted and thrown in jail for tax evasion and the sexual abuse of minors).
So why may the pro-Democratic poll numbers be irrelevant? Because they only show how people intend to vote, not whether they will actually be able to vote. Or even if they do vote, whether it will make any difference.
Consider these 12 dirty tricks that Trump will use to crush Democratic voters flatter than in the illustration at the outset of this article.
1. Aggressively Partisan Gerrymandering:
Eight state legislatures have already redrawn congressional districts to lock in an artificial Republican House majority even before voting starts. This will dilute millions of Democratic votes across entire states so they will have little or no impact, regardless of overall turnout. Six more states will soon follow their example. And don’t look for the courts to strike down these biased electoral maps: The Supreme Court has already ruled in their favor.
How many House seats will gerrymandering steal for the Republicans in November?
According to redistricting analyses from the Brennan Center for Justice and the Princeton Gerrymandering Project, these new Republican electoral maps now provide a net structural baseline advantage of 14 to 20 House seats for Republicans over a neutral national map.
In a narrowly divided House, where majority rule often hinges on fewer than five seats, gerrymandering alone can determine control of the chamber, regardless of a national lead in the popular vote for Democrats. Having 14 to 20 more seats locked up can make Republican control of the House a slam-dunk, turning the predictive headline of this article into a reality.
2. Announcing “enhanced poll surveillance by ICE to preserve order and prevent illegal voting”:
This will have a chilling effect on Latinos, naturalized citizens, and people of color in general. Many will decide to stay home, because they know that ICE sweeps are fueled by racial profiling, so that even U.S. citizens can disappear into unmarked cars, wind up in detention camps for days or weeks, and even be deported to El Salvador before they are able to prove their citizenship.
Although federal statutes such as 18 U.S.C. § 592, forbid the government from stationing armed federal troops or civil officers at “any place where a general or special election is held,” that will not stop Trump. He will exploit jurisdictional gray areas that permit the staging of immigration or federal enforcement operations outside statutory boundary lines (e.g., 100 to 500 feet away from the polls).
Since many eligible voters live in mixed-status households, with U.S. citizens residing alongside undocumented relatives or green card holders, the threat of immigration sweeps at bus stations and roadways leading to the polls will significantly depress turnout.
Ironically, Trump does not even have to deploy ICE agents at the polls. His mere promise to do so will be enough to trigger the desired chilling effect.
Is there any remedy? Yes. Emergency injunctions can be issued by federal district judges on Election Day under the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, which bars conspiracies to intimidate or coerce voters by word or deed. But in the real world, injunctions issued hours into voting will come long after the narrative has already discouraged voter turnout among “suspiciously colored” voters..
[…]
The Most Revolutionary Act 