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Barr authorizes federal prosecutors to investigate voter fraud allegations

10 November 2020
 Dan Ackermann

Attorney General Bill Barr has authorized U.S. attorneys to conduct investigations into alleged voter fraud if there are "clear and apparently-credible allegations of irregularities" that could change the outcome of a federal election in a particular state, AP reports.

Why it matters: President Trump has refused to concede the election to President-elect Joe Biden, alleging a conspiracy of widespread voting fraud and corruption by Democratic election officials. He has thus far not provided specific evidence for his claims, which have been shot down by both Democratic and Republican secretaries of state.

Between the lines: Barr, who has long been a target of criticism by Democrats who allege he has politicized the Justice Department, testified in June that he has "no reason to think" that the 2020 election will be rigged.

  • He has cast doubt on the reliability of mass mail-in ballots — baselessly claiming that foreign adversaries could sabotage the vote — but has cited "common sense" rather than any specific evidence of fraud.
  • A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

What to watch: States have until Dec. 8 to settle controversies and disputes over elections, including recounts and lawsuits, before members of the Electoral College meet to vote on Dec. 14. The Trump campaign has requested a recount on Wisconsin and has filed dozens of lawsuits in battleground states.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.