Ari Fleischer

Well, I had an inside view to this one, Charlie. I worked for Dave McCormick's campaign, and what I saw in the recount was the National Democrats flooded into Pennsylvania, led by a big election attorney who had flipped other races, and they were trying to save Bob Casey from losing. And the way they do it is what I got to see.

Well, I had an inside view to this one, Charlie. I worked for Dave McCormick's campaign, and what I saw in the recount was the National Democrats flooded into Pennsylvania, led by a big election attorney who had flipped other races, and they were trying to save Bob Casey from losing. And the way they do it is what I got to see.

What their technique is, and this is a warning to every other state out there, is if they can find sympathetic county commissioners, sympathetic judges, they will – convert votes that by definition by state law are illegal into legal votes. And they only try to do it in overwhelmingly democratic counties.

What their technique is, and this is a warning to every other state out there, is if they can find sympathetic county commissioners, sympathetic judges, they will – convert votes that by definition by state law are illegal into legal votes. And they only try to do it in overwhelmingly democratic counties.

And so what they try to do in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, for example, was count votes that were undated or not signed, both of which are barred by state law from being counted as illegitimate, illegitimate vote. They're illegal votes. They found a county commissioner to in effect nullify state law. and said, we're going to count these votes.

And so what they try to do in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, for example, was count votes that were undated or not signed, both of which are barred by state law from being counted as illegitimate, illegitimate vote. They're illegal votes. They found a county commissioner to in effect nullify state law. and said, we're going to count these votes.

And it took the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, where McCormick sued, to stop that from happening. The lesson, Charlie, is every candidate has to have an operation in every county that knows the law, has smart lawyers, are on their toes, and are instantly prepared to pounce because the Democrats will try to convert illegal to legal.

And it took the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, where McCormick sued, to stop that from happening. The lesson, Charlie, is every candidate has to have an operation in every county that knows the law, has smart lawyers, are on their toes, and are instantly prepared to pounce because the Democrats will try to convert illegal to legal.

And in overwhelmingly Democratic counties, they have a shot at doing it.

And in overwhelmingly Democratic counties, they have a shot at doing it.

Well, she should probably go to state prison. Yeah, this is the modern day nullification crisis. This is the matter where a state commissioner, and by the way, she prevailed. It was a two to one vote to count votes that by state law are illegal votes. They voted to count them in Bucks County, two to one. She nullified the state law.

Well, she should probably go to state prison. Yeah, this is the modern day nullification crisis. This is the matter where a state commissioner, and by the way, she prevailed. It was a two to one vote to count votes that by state law are illegal votes. They voted to count them in Bucks County, two to one. She nullified the state law.

And what did the Democratic governor of the state of Pennsylvania do? He sat there silently as his laws were being nullified in this county. He waited till the state Supreme Court ruled to show any courage and to say anything. And that's just the one county in which a commissioner was brazen enough to say it.

And what did the Democratic governor of the state of Pennsylvania do? He sat there silently as his laws were being nullified in this county. He waited till the state Supreme Court ruled to show any courage and to say anything. And that's just the one county in which a commissioner was brazen enough to say it.

In many other counties throughout Pennsylvania, it was going on without them bragging about it. The Democrats tried, unsuccessfully I have to say, but they tried to overturn state law, by going to the courts to get favorable rulings. And that's the vulnerability of our system.

In many other counties throughout Pennsylvania, it was going on without them bragging about it. The Democrats tried, unsuccessfully I have to say, but they tried to overturn state law, by going to the courts to get favorable rulings. And that's the vulnerability of our system.

All it takes is a friendly judge or a friendly commissioner to agree that state law no longer matters, the rules that everybody agreed to play by no longer matters, and therefore we're going to count votes in Democratic counties. And it wasn't just Bucks County. It was several counties.

All it takes is a friendly judge or a friendly commissioner to agree that state law no longer matters, the rules that everybody agreed to play by no longer matters, and therefore we're going to count votes in Democratic counties. And it wasn't just Bucks County. It was several counties.

Now, if McCormick's lead, Charlie, had been 1,000 votes or 2,000 votes, I guarantee you that recount would still be going on today. We had a big enough cushion to fight it, resist it, and not let them find enough friendly judges or friendly commissioners to flip the balance. But that's the real lesson. In a close race, all it takes is a few friendly judges or commissioners. And that's the formula.

Now, if McCormick's lead, Charlie, had been 1,000 votes or 2,000 votes, I guarantee you that recount would still be going on today. We had a big enough cushion to fight it, resist it, and not let them find enough friendly judges or friendly commissioners to flip the balance. But that's the real lesson. In a close race, all it takes is a few friendly judges or commissioners. And that's the formula.

That's what Republicans in every state have to be on the lookout for. They have to blow the whistle. What we did in McCormick's race was every time we found any Democratic attempt to overturn the law through a court, We blew the whistle. We shined a light. We let everybody know that this is illegal. They're trying to call it legal. They're looking for a friendly judge to make it so.

That's what Republicans in every state have to be on the lookout for. They have to blow the whistle. What we did in McCormick's race was every time we found any Democratic attempt to overturn the law through a court, We blew the whistle. We shined a light. We let everybody know that this is illegal. They're trying to call it legal. They're looking for a friendly judge to make it so.

Now, they didn't find the friendly judges, not enough of them in Pennsylvania to prevail, and our margin was too big. But that's what they did to Norm Coleman when they flipped the race when Senator Norm Coleman won in Minnesota and rewarded that race instead to Al Franken. The Democrat, that's how they go around the country in close races and turn illegal votes into legal votes.

Now, they didn't find the friendly judges, not enough of them in Pennsylvania to prevail, and our margin was too big. But that's what they did to Norm Coleman when they flipped the race when Senator Norm Coleman won in Minnesota and rewarded that race instead to Al Franken. The Democrat, that's how they go around the country in close races and turn illegal votes into legal votes.

Charlie, a lot of that was legitimate. That's called provisional ballots, and the provisional ballots in Pennsylvania historically do break in favor of the Democrats. Provisional ballots are legal ballots. Now, there are provisional ballots that should not be counted, and many of them were not counted because we made sure they weren't counted.

Charlie, a lot of that was legitimate. That's called provisional ballots, and the provisional ballots in Pennsylvania historically do break in favor of the Democrats. Provisional ballots are legal ballots. Now, there are provisional ballots that should not be counted, and many of them were not counted because we made sure they weren't counted.

What the Democrats were trying to do was have provisional ballots – called all of them, whether they don't have a secrecy envelope, whether they weren't signed, they weren't dated, all which state law says they must be, they wanted to count those too. And so it was legitimate for our lead to shrink because the provisional ballots just do tend to favor Democrats.

What the Democrats were trying to do was have provisional ballots – called all of them, whether they don't have a secrecy envelope, whether they weren't signed, they weren't dated, all which state law says they must be, they wanted to count those too. And so it was legitimate for our lead to shrink because the provisional ballots just do tend to favor Democrats.

But the Democrats wanted to count every single provisional ballot and we stopped them. There were illegal provisionals, provisionals that should not count. And if those had counted, That's where they would have tried to flip the election. So it's a little complicated, but that's where it came down to.

But the Democrats wanted to count every single provisional ballot and we stopped them. There were illegal provisionals, provisionals that should not count. And if those had counted, That's where they would have tried to flip the election. So it's a little complicated, but that's where it came down to.

Citizens have the power, actually. What Donald Trump did by blowing the whistle in 2020 when whether people agree or don't agree it was stolen or not stolen. He put the issue front and center for people to be alarmed and on their toes. And so what happens is citizens now, if they see something going on at a polling place, they take a video of it. They let everybody know it goes viral.

Citizens have the power, actually. What Donald Trump did by blowing the whistle in 2020 when whether people agree or don't agree it was stolen or not stolen. He put the issue front and center for people to be alarmed and on their toes. And so what happens is citizens now, if they see something going on at a polling place, they take a video of it. They let everybody know it goes viral.

Our lawyers see it. It lights up the sky. And therefore, we can dig in and say, is this a legitimate complaint that somebody posted on social media? Or is it they didn't understand the law and it actually is okay? We pursued all of that thanks to citizens posting about it. So that's where the first level of vigilance comes from. The second level of vigilance, again, I credit Donald Trump for this,

Our lawyers see it. It lights up the sky. And therefore, we can dig in and say, is this a legitimate complaint that somebody posted on social media? Or is it they didn't understand the law and it actually is okay? We pursued all of that thanks to citizens posting about it. So that's where the first level of vigilance comes from. The second level of vigilance, again, I credit Donald Trump for this,

is because of him, he put Michael Watley at the Republican National Committee as the chairman, and the National Republican Senatorial Committee took it seriously too and gave us a lot of resources during the recount to fight this tooth and nail. They brought in a ton of lawyers, smart lawyers who knew the law, who were ready to fight to help us to prevail and knock down the Democrat lawyers.

is because of him, he put Michael Watley at the Republican National Committee as the chairman, and the National Republican Senatorial Committee took it seriously too and gave us a lot of resources during the recount to fight this tooth and nail. They brought in a ton of lawyers, smart lawyers who knew the law, who were ready to fight to help us to prevail and knock down the Democrat lawyers.

So the Republican infrastructure rose to the occasion and fought like Tooth and nail. And also citizens. I mean, I really emphasize that when I say the power of a citizen who sees something wrong on election day, takes a video, if a bus pulls up and they see a bunch of people get off the bus who are escorted to the front of the line, you know, we want to know about that.

So the Republican infrastructure rose to the occasion and fought like Tooth and nail. And also citizens. I mean, I really emphasize that when I say the power of a citizen who sees something wrong on election day, takes a video, if a bus pulls up and they see a bunch of people get off the bus who are escorted to the front of the line, you know, we want to know about that.

It could be legitimate, but we're going to make darn sure it's legitimate. So a lot happened where people learned the lessons of 2020 that helped put us in a stronger position in 2024 to fight it.

It could be legitimate, but we're going to make darn sure it's legitimate. So a lot happened where people learned the lessons of 2020 that helped put us in a stronger position in 2024 to fight it.

She's in a totally different era than I was when I was in that job. When I was in that job, America still relied on the mainstream media for better or worse to tell them what was happening. That era is over, Charlie, as you know.

She's in a totally different era than I was when I was in that job. When I was in that job, America still relied on the mainstream media for better or worse to tell them what was happening. That era is over, Charlie, as you know.

I wrote an op-ed in The Hill a couple weeks ago where I advocated that the 49 seats in the briefing room no longer go to The New York Times, CBS, ABC, NBC, The Washington Post, the mainstream media. The front rows should move to the back rows or they shouldn't get a seat at all. And the front rows should now be alternative sources. It should be conservative media. It should be podcasts.

I wrote an op-ed in The Hill a couple weeks ago where I advocated that the 49 seats in the briefing room no longer go to The New York Times, CBS, ABC, NBC, The Washington Post, the mainstream media. The front rows should move to the back rows or they shouldn't get a seat at all. And the front rows should now be alternative sources. It should be conservative media. It should be podcasts.

It should be talk radio. It should be respectable social media influencers. That's how Americans get their news these days. People no longer get their news from the mainstream media. And that room is a throwback to the 1980s. And so I urge them to modernize the room, put it in tune with how people consume news today. What does that look like?

It should be talk radio. It should be respectable social media influencers. That's how Americans get their news these days. People no longer get their news from the mainstream media. And that room is a throwback to the 1980s. And so I urge them to modernize the room, put it in tune with how people consume news today. What does that look like?

That looks like you allow the front rows to be filled with conservative media, the Daily Examiner, the Daily Wire, somebody from your show, Charlie, somebody from Joe Rogan's show, a producer. It looks like the way people get their news. And plus... The media are activists. They take sides. Nobody should pretend anymore that CBS, NBC, The New York Times are neutral. They're not.

That looks like you allow the front rows to be filled with conservative media, the Daily Examiner, the Daily Wire, somebody from your show, Charlie, somebody from Joe Rogan's show, a producer. It looks like the way people get their news. And plus... The media are activists. They take sides. Nobody should pretend anymore that CBS, NBC, The New York Times are neutral. They're not.

They're anti-Trump. Trump should get people in the front rows who ask him legitimate, good, earnest, hard questions. But not everything is a game of destruction where they just want to take the president down. The American people would be better served with a more modernized media room, and so will Donald Trump.

They're anti-Trump. Trump should get people in the front rows who ask him legitimate, good, earnest, hard questions. But not everything is a game of destruction where they just want to take the president down. The American people would be better served with a more modernized media room, and so will Donald Trump.

more neutral or more fair reporters in those seats, fair to Donald Trump. I do think you could go find another place in the White House that would allow what you're talking about, an audio, a video component, and physically there's just not that much space, certainly not in the West Wing. You'd have to gut the briefing room to do it there, and that's not going to be in the cards.

more neutral or more fair reporters in those seats, fair to Donald Trump. I do think you could go find another place in the White House that would allow what you're talking about, an audio, a video component, and physically there's just not that much space, certainly not in the West Wing. You'd have to gut the briefing room to do it there, and that's not going to be in the cards.

You could find another room to do what you're talking about, but the briefing room is more important. Who sits in those 49 seats? Who asks the questions? How come none of the reporters previously thought it was even remotely possible that the coronavirus originated in a Chinese lab?

You could find another room to do what you're talking about, but the briefing room is more important. Who sits in those 49 seats? Who asks the questions? How come none of the reporters previously thought it was even remotely possible that the coronavirus originated in a Chinese lab?

Wouldn't we all as a country be better off if there were people sitting in those seats who thought that's a legitimate line of inquiry? And they ask those type of questions. The whole media before it that was out to get Trump, when it came to collusion, when it came to the Steele dossier, they've proved incapable of being fair or neutral. And they're losing viewers and readers.

Wouldn't we all as a country be better off if there were people sitting in those seats who thought that's a legitimate line of inquiry? And they ask those type of questions. The whole media before it that was out to get Trump, when it came to collusion, when it came to the Steele dossier, they've proved incapable of being fair or neutral. And they're losing viewers and readers.

That's not where the action is. The action is with the new media. It's with people like you, Charlie, and it's people like we've just been talking about. And that's who should occupy certainly the front rows of those 49 seats. And I could make the case for all 49 seats.

That's not where the action is. The action is with the new media. It's with people like you, Charlie, and it's people like we've just been talking about. And that's who should occupy certainly the front rows of those 49 seats. And I could make the case for all 49 seats.

Thanks, Charlie. Always great to be on with you.

Thanks, Charlie. Always great to be on with you.