Overview
- In a New York Times interview, Trump said he "should have" ordered the National Guard to impound voting machines after his 2020 loss and questioned whether the Guard was "sophisticated enough" to execute it.
- Reporting recounts that in 2020 senior officials, including White House counsel Pat Cipollone and Attorney General Bill Barr, rejected the idea as lacking legal basis, and efforts to involve DHS were rebuffed.
- Trump continues to attack digital voting technology and has said he wants to lead a push to eliminate voting machines ahead of the midterms.
- Parallel legal battles include Justice Department demands for voter-roll data from at least 40 states and Washington, D.C., with about ten states cooperating and others fighting the requests.
- A separate executive order seeking to bar states from counting mail ballots received after Election Day remains blocked by a lower court, and the U.S. Supreme Court is set to review the case this year, as election-law experts warn of potential disruption in 2026.