Left, Right & Center

Trump pursues control of voting, teases a third term

35 snips
Aug 22, 2025
Mike Dupke, a veteran GOP communications strategist and former White House communications director under Trump, and Rebecca Piercy, a Democratic strategist and former political director for Elizabeth Warren, dive into Trump’s controversial take on voting. They discuss his crusade against mail-in voting and potential federal overreach, raising alarms about the implications for state rights. The conversation also scrutinizes the ongoing military presence in D.C. amid protests, and Trump's promotional push for a possible third term, igniting debates on democracy and power dynamics.
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INSIGHT

Federal Claims Versus State Election Control

  • Trump openly called to end mail-in ballots and voting machines and framed states as federal agents for vote counting.
  • Legal control of elections still rests with states and changing that would require congressional action.
INSIGHT

Federalism As A Check On Power

  • Rebecca Piercy argues Trump's push to nationalize election rules contradicts long-established federalism and state authority.
  • She warns this shift would centralize power and undermine the safeguards built into U.S. election administration.
INSIGHT

Slowness Of Institutions As A Safeguard

  • Mike Dupke emphasizes the Constitution's slow-moving checks and balances as protection against autocracy.
  • He argues institutional slowness and multiple actors make building an autocracy difficult.
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