WaPo:

President Trump reiterated Thursday that he may not honor the results should he lose reelection, reaffirming his extraordinary refusal to commit to a peaceful transition of power and prompting election and law enforcement authorities nationwide to prepare for an unprecedented constitutional crisis.

Trump escalated his months-long campaign to undermine the legitimacy of the Nov. 3 election with comments Wednesday that, taken together and at face value, pose his most substantial threat yet to the nation’s history of free and fair elections.

In recent days, the president cast doubt on the integrity of vote totals. He said he might not accept the results if they show him losing to Democratic nominee Joe Biden. He said it was imperative to quickly fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg because the nation’s high court could determine the winner of the election.

And when asked directly whether he would commit to a “peaceful transition of power,” Trump responded, “We’re going to have to see what happens.” He went on to suggest that authorities “get rid of the ballots,” an apparent reference to the huge uptick in votes cast by mail amid the coronavirus pandemic, adding that, if they did, “there won’t be a transfer [of power], frankly. There will be a continuation.”

Asked on Sept. 23 if he would commit to a peaceful transfer of power if he loses the election, President Trump said, “We’re going to have to see what happens.” (The Washington Post)

Trump reaffirmed his views Thursday, saying on Fox News Radio that he would agree with a Supreme Court ruling that Biden won the election but that short of a court decision, the vote count would amount to “a horror show” because of fraudulent ballots. There is no evidence of widespread fraud.

Later Thursday, as he left the White House for a campaign rally in North Carolina, Trump reiterated to reporters, “We want to make sure the election is honest, and I’m not sure that it can be.”

Trump’s running commentary about an illegitimate vote reverberated from coast to coast. Many of Trump’s Republican allies in Congress, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), issued perfunctory statements declaring that the winner of the Nov. 3 election would be inaugurated on Jan. 20 — an orderly transition as there traditionally has been in the United States.

Democratic state attorneys general strategized among themselves on what to do if the president refuses to accept the result and said they were most concerned that his drumbeat of unfounded accusations about fraud could undermine public confidence in the election.