Yes, He Lost in 2020…and Wouldn’t Accept It – According to a new report from The Washington Post last weekend, former President Donald Trump’s campaign spent more than $600,000 to try to substantiate the claims of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election.
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However, employees at Berkeley Research Group went on to find no irregularities that would have changed the outcome.
The global consulting firm, which helps organizations with assistance in disputes and investigations, was founded in February 2010. In the past decade, it has provided economic, financial, and analytical advice for a range of disciplines.
It was commissioned to look into voting data from six states, and the Donald Trump campaign reportedly wanted about a dozen claims tested.
No Difference in Outcome for Donald Trump
However, Berkeley Research Group’s findings didn’t match what Trump’s team had hoped for, and the findings were never released.
According to the Post, some anomalies and “unusual data patterns” were discovered, but none that would have made a difference in the outcome.
In fact, the firm’s finds actually refuted some of the claims made by Trump’s team, including that Democrats used the names of dead people to cast extra ballots for Biden, or other manipulation, including voter machine malfunctions.
The findings, which were conducted by a dozen researchers, were shared with Trump, then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and others via a December 2020 conference call.
Instead of accepting the outcome of the research, Meadows reportedly “showed skepticism,” and continued to look for evidence of voter fraud.
The consulting firm could be described as the big winner – as it was paid more than $600,000 for its work, labeled “recount: legal consulting” in related Federal Election Commission filings.
This also could help explain why the Trump campaign launched a fundraising campaign – which reportedly drew in $207.5 million from donors, while Reuters reported that Trump’s leadership PAC raised $31 million between November 24 and December 31. Attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election was apparently an expensive undertaking.
Disregarding the Truth
Last year’s House January 6 Committee was presented with testimony from multiple witnesses that Trump was told repeatedly he’d lost the election.
According to MSNBC, Trump actually knew he had lost even as the fundraising appeals continued.
The news outlet also questioned, “how much of that cash grab was fully aboveboard.”
It noted that there is not necessarily anything illegal about campaign donations going to some political activity other than the one disclosed to donors, but added that one “legal defense fund” may not have actually existed.
Donald Trump had continued to repeat the “2020 election lies” as he now began to focus on his 2024 White House bid, even as allies and advisers have called upon him to shift his message.
Trump may be listening, and at his first rally attempted a forward-driven message about what he would seek to accomplish in a second term instead of focusing on the steal.
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Author Experience and Expertise: A Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.
