Trump caught on tape begging officials to subvert Michigan vote

A recording has surfaced showing how Donald Trump and Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel pressured Michigan officials in an attempt to prevent certification of 2020 election results. The recording, as reported by The Detroit News, includes Trump pushing two members of the Wayne County (Detroit) Board of Canvassers not to sign off on election results. It includes Trump making what appear to be veiled threats and offering to provide attorneys if the officials will go along with his efforts to interfere in the election.

The existence of the call has been known since shortly after the election, when the Republican chair of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers, Monica Palmer, revealed that she had been in contact with Trump. Palmer and another Republican member of the board, William Hartmann, originally voted against certifying the results, then changed their minds within hours. After Trump’s call, Palmer and Hartmann tried to reverse their votes again and signed affidavits claiming they were pressured into certifying the election.

When she mentioned the call in 2020, Palmer insisted that Trump had called "to make sure I was safe” after she and Hartmann were doxxed online. But the full contents of the recording make it clear that Trump’s purpose was much more self-serving—and sinister.