Donald Trump Jr. was proposing ways to overturn 2020 election before Biden even won, text reveals


Texts obtained by CNN reveal that Donald Trump Jr. texted former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows two days after the 2020 presidential election, before results were finalized, and laid out "ideas for keeping his father in power by subverting the Electoral College process," CNN reports.
The text message from the former president's eldest son, which has not been previously reported, is among the documents obtained by the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
"It's very simple," Trump Jr. reportedly texted Meadows on Nov. 5. "We have multiple paths We control them all," he added later.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A statement from Trump Jr.'s lawyer says that "given the date," the message "likely originated from someone else and was forwarded."
In his message, Trump Jr. "outlines a strategy that is nearly identical to what allies of the former president attempted to carry out in the months that followed," CNN writes. For instance, he reportedly references lawsuits, swing state recounts, and suggests having Republican statehouses push fake "Trump electors."
And if none of that worked, Trump Jr. went on, "we have operational control" in Congress, he said, meaning the Republican majority could simply vote to reinstate Trump as president during the certification process on Jan. 6.
The message to Meadows is significant in a variety of ways, CNN explains. Importantly, "it shows how those closest to the former president were already exchanging ideas for how to overturn the election months before the January 6 insurrection – and before all the votes were even counted." Joe Biden was declared the winner on Nov. 7, two days after Trump Jr.'s message.
The text also "adds to a growing body of evidence of how Trump's inner circle was actively engaged in discussing how to challenge the election results," CNN writes. Read more at CNN.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
A tall ship adventure in the Mediterranean
The Week Recommends Sailing aboard this schooner and exploring Portugal, Spain and Monaco is a 'magical' experience
-
How drone warfare works
The Explainer From Ukraine to Iran, it has become clear that unmanned aircraft are rapidly revolutionising modern warfare
-
The tourist flood in the Mediterranean: can it be stemmed?
Talking Point Finger-pointing at Airbnb or hotel owners obscures the root cause of overtourism in holiday hotspots: unmanageable demand
-
Trump's strikes on Iran: a 'spectacular success'?
In Depth Military humiliations 'expose the brittleness' of Tehran's ageing regime, but risk reinforcing its commitment to its nuclear program
-
Will NATO countries meet their new spending goal?
today's big question The cost of keeping Trump happy
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custody
Speed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
-
GOP races to revise megabill after Senate rulings
Speed Read A Senate parliamentarian ruled that several changes to Medicaid included in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" were not permissible
-
Supreme Court lets states ax Planned Parenthood funds
Speed Read The court ruled that Planned Parenthood cannot sue South Carolina over the state's effort to deny it funding
-
Trump plans Iran talks, insists nuke threat gone
Speed Read 'The war is done' and 'we destroyed the nuclear,' said President Trump
-
Trump embraces NATO after budget vow, charm offensive
Speed Read The president reversed course on his longstanding skepticism of the trans-Atlantic military alliance
-
Bibi's back: what will Netanyahu do next?
Today's Big Question Riding high after a series of military victories, Israel's PM could push for peace in Gaza – or secure his own position with snap election