总统唐纳德·特朗普拒绝承诺在11月之后和平移交权力选举在周三的新闻发布会上。
当被问及如果他在选举中失败，他是否会和平离开白宫时，特朗普回答说，“嗯，我们必须看看会发生什么。你知道的。”
刚刚进来:当被问及他是否会“致力于确保选举后权力的和平转移”时，总统说。特朗普说，“好吧，我们要看看会发生什么。”https://t.co/JsAo4rBy2epic.twitter.com/8haEyDVsdx
——ABC新闻(@ABC)2020年9月23日
总统接着转向一个他经常提起的话题:投票。几个月来，特朗普一直试图削弱人们对邮寄投票的信心，因为美国正在努力解决如何在大选期间安全投票的问题冠状病毒流行病。
“我一直在强烈抱怨投票，投票是一场灾难，”总统说。
当第二次被问到他是否会“致力于确保权力的和平转移”时，特朗普再次转向投票。
特朗普说:“我们希望——扔掉选票，你会过得非常平静，坦率地说，不会有转移。”“会有延续的。”
然后他转向选票，说道:“选票已经失控了。你知道的。你知道谁比其他人更了解它吗?民主党比任何人都清楚。”
特朗普缺乏和平移交权力的承诺是前所未有的。和平过渡是美国民主的一个关键方面。就连理查德·尼克松总统在1969年的第一次就职演说中也对权力的和平转移发表了评论，他说:“在有序的权力转移中，我们庆祝让我们自由的团结。”
2020年9月23日，华盛顿，唐纳德·特朗普总统在白宫詹姆斯·布雷迪新闻简报室的新闻发布会上发言。
针对特朗普承诺和平过渡权力的言论，前副总统乔·拜登的竞选团队让记者们回到7月19日发表的一份声明中，当时特朗普向福克斯新闻(Fox News)的克里斯·华莱士(Chris Wallace)给出了关于接受选举结果的类似回答。
“美国人民将决定这次选举，”拜登竞选发言人安德鲁·贝茨在声明中说。“美国政府完全有能力护送入侵者离开白宫。”
周三晚上，拜登在特拉华州的停机坪上对特朗普拒绝承诺无论选举结果如何都要和平移交权力作出了简短回应。
“我们在哪个国家?我在开玩笑。我说，我们在哪个国家?听着，他说了最不理智的话。i...我不知道该说些什么，但这并不令我惊讶，”拜登说。
犹他州参议员米特·罗姆尼(Mitt Romney)周三晚上在推特上写道:“民主的根本是权力的和平过渡;没有这一点，就有白俄罗斯。任何暗示总统可能不尊重这一宪法保障的说法都是不可想象和不可接受的。”
民主的根本是权力的和平过渡;没有这一点，就有白俄罗斯。任何关于总统可能不尊重宪法保障的建议都是不可想象和不可接受的。
—米特·罗姆尼(@米特·罗姆尼)2020年9月24日
这不是特朗普第一次用邮寄选票引发对广泛选民欺诈的毫无根据的担忧。他经常在集会上和推特上提起这件事，社交媒体平台已经将这些推特标记为违反其“公民诚信政策”。
2020年9月23日，DC，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在白宫布雷迪简报室的新闻发布会上发表讲话。
在今年早些时候接受福克斯新闻采访时，特朗普也没有承诺接受选举结果，他说“我要看看。”
就在路易斯维尔和全国各地开始抗议几小时后，总统于周三发表了评论肯塔基州大陪审团只起诉了一名官员因为在警察开枪打死布莱娜·泰勒的过程中，她涉嫌危害她的邻居。
乔治·弗洛伊德(George Floyd)去世后，这个夏天也充满了紧张和动荡，随着特朗普部署联邦执法机构平息全国各城市的抗议，愤怒达到顶峰。
President Donald Trump declines to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'There won't be a transfer'
PresidentDonald Trumpdeclined to commit to a peaceful transfer of power following November'selectionduring a press conference on Wednesday.
Asked if he will leave the White House peacefully, if he loses the election, Trump responded, "Well, we're going to have to see what happens. You know that."
JUST IN: Asked if he'd "commit to making sure that there is a peaceful transferral of power after the election," Pres. Trump says, "Well, we're going to have to see what happens."https://t.co/JsAo4rBy2epic.twitter.com/8haEyDVsdx
— ABC News (@ABC)September 23, 2020
The president then shifted to a subject he has frequently brought up: ballots. For months, Trump has sought to undermine confidence in mail-in voting as the country grapples with how to safely cast ballots during thecoronaviruspandemic.
"I've been complaining very strongly about the ballots and the ballots are a disaster," the president said.
When pressed for a second time if he would "commit to making sure that there's a peaceful transferral of power," Trump again turned to ballots.
"We want to have -- get rid of the ballots and you'll have a very peaceful, there won't be a transfer, frankly," Trump said. "There'll be a continuation."
He then pivoted back to the ballots, saying, "the ballots are out of control. You know it. You know who knows it better than anybody else? The Democrats know better than anybody else."
Trump's lack of commitment to a peaceful transfer of power is unprecedented. A peaceful transition is a key aspect of American democracy. Even President Richard Nixon, during his first Inaugural Address in 1969, commented on the peaceful transfer of power, saying, "In the orderly transfer of power, we celebrate the unity that keeps us free."
President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Sept. 23, 2020, in Washington.
In response to Trump's comments on committing to a peaceful transition of power, former Vice President Joe Biden's campaign is referring reporters back to a statement issued on July 19, when Trump gave a similar answer about accepting the results of the election to Fox News' Chris Wallace.
"The American people will decide this election," Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates said in the statement. "And the United States government is perfectly capable of escorting trespassers out of the White House."
On Wednesday night, Biden gave a brief response on the tarmac in Delaware, to Trump's refusal to commit to a peaceful transition of power regardless of the result of the election.
"What country are we in? I'm being facetious. I said, what country are we in? Look, he says the most irrational things. I... I don't know what to say about it, but it doesn't surprise me," Biden said.
Utah Sen. Mitt Romney also commented on the president's words, writing on Twitter Wednesday evening, "Fundamental to democracy is the peaceful transition of power; without that, there is Belarus. Any suggestion that a president might not respect this Constitutional guarantee is both unthinkable and unacceptable."
Fundamental to democracy is the peaceful transition of power; without that, there is Belarus. Any suggestion that a president might not respect this Constitutional guarantee is both unthinkable and unacceptable.
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney)September 24, 2020
This is not the first time Trump has stoked baseless fears of widespread voter fraud with mail-in ballots. He has frequently brought it up during rallies and on Twitter, which the social media platform has flagged marking the tweets as a violation of its "Civic Integrity Policy."
President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House on Sept. 23, 2020, in Washington, DC.
During an interview with Fox News earlier this year, Trump didn't commit to accepting the election results either, saying "I have to see."
The president's comments on Wednesday came just hours after protests began in Louisville and across the country, whena Kentucky grand jury indicted only one officerfor allegedly endangering the neighbors of Breonna Taylor during the police shooting that killed her.
The summer was also filled with tension and unrest following the death of George Floyd, and outrage peaked as Trump deployed federal law enforcement to quiet protests in cities throughout the nation.
