Opinion: Oh, there is some pearl clutching language about ‘serious vulnerabilities’ to the system. But massive fraud? A stolen election? No.
Shortly after the 2020 presidential election Attorney General Mark Brnovich appeared on Fox Business, where he was asked about unsubstantiated claims of election fraud in Arizona.
He said at the time, “if indeed there was some great conspiracy” to steal votes from fellow Republicans, “it apparently didn’t work.”
True.
He added, “In Arizona, there was a prediction that the (Republican-controlled) Legislature would flip. It didn’t. There were some congressional districts that supposedly leaned Democrat. They didn’t flip. The county recorder here who oversees elections went from Democrat to Republican. The county attorney remained Republican.”
Also true.
Brnovich continued, “That’s the reality. There is no evidence, there are no facts that would lead anyone to believe that the election results will change.”
True as well.
He was just AG then, not a U.S. Senate candidate
But, that was Brnovich when he still was acting like an actual attorney general and before he decided to use his elected office almost exclusively to promote his campaign for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate.
That led to Brnovich having his investigators conduct their own investigation of what is probably the most investigated election … anywhere … ever.
And in a report handed over to Arizona Senate President Karen Fann – who orchestrated the ongoing Cyber Ninjas audit disaster – Brnovich reports that his investigation revealed “serious vulnerabilities.”
Actually, what it seems to have revealed is serious political BS on the part of Brnovich.
Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer (a Republican who gained office in that 2020 election) responded with a quick Twitter answer to Brnovich’s claims.
Richer and the county’s Republican-controlled board of supervisors have responded, and responded, and responded to claims of fraud
Never finding a serious problem after multiple independent reviews.
County recorder speaks truth about Brnovich’s probe
But, as Richer points out in his tweet thread concerning Brnovich’s probe:
“I remember spending many, many hours working with investigators on our entire tech stack. Looking at questions like internet connectivity and data deletion. I guess the answers to those don’t fit the narrative … .”
🧵🧵I remember spending many, many hours working with investigators on our entire tech stack. Looking at questions like internet connectivity and data deletion. I guess the answers to those don’t fit the narrative…
— Stephen Richer—Maricopa Cnty Recorder (prsnl acct) (@stephen_richer) April 6, 2022
Exactly. Brnovich needed to please Republicans who refuse to accept the truth about the election. He had to throw them some kind of bone.
Richer goes on to explain or debunk what Brnovich’s minions came up with and ends his Twitter thread response with the most important point.
Richer says of Brnovich’s report, “But most importantly, it, rightfully, doesn’t say anything about a stolen election or unlawful acts by election workers … .”
And, he adds, “All of this seems appropriate as it’s coming from the man who (rightfully) laughed off notions of a stolen election on Fox News that people simply split their ticket (which is how we still have a Republican legislature).”
Yes.
That is exactly what Brnovich did in 2020.
Back when he was acting like an actual attorney general rather than treating his elected office like a campaign headquarters.
Reach Montini at ed.montini@arizonarepublic.com.
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