Thank you to Steve Bannon for giving away the game:

Step 1: Show the people that ICE can kill anybody.

Step 2: Have ICE show up at polling stations in areas where people vote against Trump, so those neighborhoods do not go vote.

@randahl

So Bannon wants to get the idea of ICE being present at polling stations into the public consciousness. The fact he chose to be the person to say it suggests his influence really has tanked even in MAGA circles. To make it happen would be a declaration of civil war…I suspect this is more about stoking the fear to get same outcome without the smoking gun.

@dmitry Randahl Fink

The point is that they ultimately don't care if people vote

Ricardo Harvin (@ricardoharvin@mstdn.social)

Why is anyone in the U.S. thinking in terms of "four years", or "midterms ", or "elections" (beyond typical authoritarian kinds)? Have people not been paying attention? Will these people continue to be "Shocked! Shocked!" with each new decision made by this administration? That anyone believes anything but the worst will happen is how he got re-elected. This time there are no obstacles to his enacting or enabling anything he chooses. Stop your willful ignorance, this is real. #USPol

Mastodon 🐘 (mstdn.social)

@randahl It's also important to note that if you have the option available to you, you can vote by mail. BUT, the post office is delaying postmarks by several days so if you vote by mail, get it into the mail as soon as possible. If you wait until near the deadline it will likely not get postmarked in time and your vote will not be accepted. So mail in your vote EARLY.

@randahl He's not giving away the game, this statement itself is voter suppression. Journalists and influencers amplifying this message are helping him scare people into not voting in November.

For the rest of the game, watch what #TulsiGabbard is doing. Gerry-mandering and voter suppression might not be enough this time, they're preparing to seize the ballots and voting machines under bogus national security pretenses and prevent certification of the vote by the states.

@randahl
ICE doesn't have that many people.

Also, Minnesota had a special election with ICE oppressing them and scaring people from going out in public. They voted in spite of it.

Minnesotans just showed they’ll ‘crawl over broken glass’ to vote, despite ICE terror

If Trump sends troops to disrupt voting, he could face a massive backlash

(www.the-downballot.com)

@randahl
3. Make a picture of each voter and verify if they are Republican or Democrat. If it's a democrat, beat him

Thank you to Steve Bannon for giving away the game:

Step 1: Show the people that ICE can kill anybody.

Step 2: Have ICE show up at polling stations in areas where people vote against Trump, so those neighborhoods do not go vote.

Thank you to Steve Bannon for giving away the game:

Step 1: Show the people that ICE can kill anybody.

Step 2: Have ICE show up at polling stations in areas where people vote against Trump, so those neighborhoods do not go vote.

Randahl Fink

Everyone not in denial has understood this to be one of their key goals.

Ricardo Harvin (@ricardoharvin@mstdn.social)

Why is anyone in the U.S. thinking in terms of "four years", or "midterms ", or "elections" (beyond typical authoritarian kinds)? Have people not been paying attention? Will these people continue to be "Shocked! Shocked!" with each new decision made by this administration? That anyone believes anything but the worst will happen is how he got re-elected. This time there are no obstacles to his enacting or enabling anything he chooses. Stop your willful ignorance, this is real. #USPol

Mastodon 🐘 (mstdn.social)

@JugglingWithEggs ”would be a declaration of civil war”

What do you think the US is having now, then? How many times can you move the red line?

@randahl

As pointed by Devereaux, Bouie and probably many others, they don't have enough goons to do that, and by far.
And as shown by Minneapolis, if they try that in some voting places (which is the maximum their numbers can allow), getting their behavior on camera won't bring them good results overall.

I'm not saying that they won't try it, but they can't pull it out with the current political equilibrium.

@lienrag @randahl But they only have to do it in a few key places where the winning margin is usually small one way or the other.

And they only have to be seen doing it in a few places and spread rumours that it's happening in more to put people off going anywhere near their voting location.

Thank you to Steve Bannon for giving away the game:

Step 1: Show the people that ICE can kill anybody.

Step 2: Have ICE show up at polling stations in areas where people vote against Trump, so those neighborhoods do not go vote.

@beecycling

They have to do it at enough key places to offset the counter-effect that we've seen with the Pretti-Good answers to the Minneapolis situation (as far as Texas).
They don't have enough goons to do that.

And the chilling effect has to also offset the anger effect.

Remember, don't comply in advance.

There are reasons to worry (and to register as an observer in order to prevent them from succeeding), but not to capitulate.

@randahl

@lienrag @randahl I hope that counter effect is still going by November. I'm sure they will do many more terrible things by then. They're probably out to provoke a response that gives them an excuse to cancel the elections entirely. If they can't get that, they will steal them, however blatant they have to be about it. You're not going to get a normal election again until these people are gone, and they're not going to go quietly.

@randahl Steve Bannon? The guy from the Epstein files? No way, I can't believe it!!

Also, it is illegal for federal agents to be at polling locations without an active crime being committed. Let's see how they twist the law this time.

Thank you to Steve Bannon for giving away the game:

Step 1: Show the people that ICE can kill anybody.

Step 2: Have ICE show up at polling stations in areas where people vote against Trump, so those neighborhoods do not go vote.

@ricardoharvin Bullshit. If they really didn't, they wouldn't be pouring so much money and effort into making it harder to vote.