President Trump appeared to temper his tone on Friday afternoon, issuing a statement that stood in sharp contrast to his rambling rant on Thursday night and his flurries of all-caps tweets baselessly alleging election fraud on Twitter. Though the statement still insinuated the existence of "illegal ballots" — something both election officials and the president's own campaign aides have failed to identify any evidence of — it lacked the defiance of his earlier addresses, and possibly even left room for his acceptance of a narrowing path to victory.
"We believe the American people deserve to have full transparency into all vote counting and election certification, and that this is no longer about any single election," Trump said, adding that "from the beginning we have said that all legal ballots must be counted and all illegal ballots should not be counted. … We will pursue this process through every aspect of the law to guarantee that the American people have confidence in our government. I will never give up fighting for you and our nation."
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.
-
Has the Taliban banned women from speaking?Today's Big Question 'Rambling' message about 'bizarre' restriction joins series of recent decrees that amount to silencing of Afghanistan's women
-
Cuba's energy crisisThe Explainer Already beset by a host of issues, the island nation is struggling with nationwide blackouts
-
Putin's fixation with shamansUnder the Radar Secretive Russian leader, said to be fascinated with occult and pagan rituals, allegedly asked for blessing over nuclear weapons
-
Chimpanzees are dying of human diseasesUnder the radar Great apes are vulnerable to human pathogens thanks to genetic similarity, increased contact and no immunity
-
Deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies hang over Sydney's Mardi GrasThe Explainer Police officer, the former partner of TV presenter victim, charged with two counts of murder after turning himself in
-
Quiz of The Week: 24 February - 1 MarchPuzzles and Quizzes Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
-
Will mounting discontent affect Iran election?Today's Big Question Low turnout is expected in poll seen as crucial test for Tehran's leadership
-
Sweden clears final NATO hurdle with Hungary voteSpeed Read Hungary's parliament overwhelmingly approved Sweden's accession to NATO
