Evan McMullin, an independent candidate for the Utah Senate, joined incumbent Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) on Monday for his role in planning to overturn the 2020 presidential election in a rival Senate debate. Confronted about
Text message from Lee to former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows about how Lee Helped promote legally questionable plans To keep then-President Donald Trump in power before changing course on January 6, 2021 and voting to certify the 2020 election. recommended Trump’s top adviser backing Sidney Powell, a Republican attorney who spread baseless allegations of election fraud.
“This is the most egregious betrayal of our constitution in the history of our nation and will be your legacy,” McMullin said at a debate on Monday.
“When the savages were at the gate, you were happy to let them in,” McMullin adds, referring to texts Lee sent to Meadows to listen to people like Powell and John Eastman. I urged him to lean. Memo to overthrow the election”.
Lee defended himself by saying that he was simply looking into “rumours” of alternative lists of electors weeks before Congress voted to approve the 2020 presidential election, eventually ending up with Democrat Joe Biden. said he voted to endorse him as president.
“There is absolutely nothing in the idea that I endorsed a bogus election plan…that is not true. You owe me an apology,” Lee told McMullin.
A conservative senator held up a pocket constitution.
McMullin countered: “Senator Lee has been doing this with his pocket constitution for the past few years…the constitution is not a prop for you to shake your hand at. When it is convenient to abandon the pursuit. Thoughts.”
In a Dec. 8, 2020 text message to Meadows, Lee said that if “very few states let Congress appoint replacement delegates,” there “may be a way” to overturn the results of the 2020 election. I can’t,” he suggested.
But by January 3, 2021, just days before the violent attack on the US Capitol by hundreds of Trump supporters, Lee appeared to have had a change of heart. In a text message to Meadows, he warned that his efforts could “backfire badly” and urged him to persuade Trump to change course.
Mr. Lee said on Jan. 4, “Mr. Trump’s slate is a decision of the state legislature, and without a dueling slate, he has absolutely no authority to deny the state’s electoral votes.”
Lee faces a tougher-than-expected challenge from McMullin, a former CIA officer and Republican House clerk.The race isn’t considered competitive, but a recent poll found McMullin in the immediate vicinity of 4 points.
This article originally appeared on huff post and updated.