Does President Trump have a legal path to reelection?

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Does President Trump have a legal path to reelection?

'Special Report' All-Star panel discusses allegations of election fraud as legal battles mount

Nov. 17, 2020 – This is a rush transcript from “Special Report” November 17, 2020. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

BRET BAIER, FOX NEWS HOST : Good evening, I'm Bret Baier. Breaking tonight, Rudy Giuliani makes the president's case to try to change the election outcome in the key state of Pennsylvania. After the discovery of thousands of uncounted votes in Georgia, that gave the president and his supporters new ammunition in their quest to challenge the results of the election.

Well, the Republican Secretary of State in Georgia, speaking out about why the president fell short as that recount comes to the end. We are also learning more about the president's plans for U.S. troops in the Middle East.

Chief White House correspondent John Roberts starts us off tonight with a lot of news from the North Lawn. Good evening, John.

JOHN ROBERTS, FOX NEWS CHANNEL CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (on camera):

Bret, good evening to you. Wisconsin today completed its county canvass of votes finding that Joe Biden beat President Trump by 20,600 votes. The Trump campaign still considering whether or not to pay for a recount in the Badger State.

Also today, more votes found in the state of Georgia and more U.S. troops soon coming home from the Middle East and Asia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS (Voice over): In Williamsport, Pennsylvania today, Rudy Giuliani leading the Trump campaign into court, trying to hold off a motion to dismiss the campaign's challenge to the vote in the Keystone State.

If the Obama appointed judge grants the motion to dismiss, it could be a big blow to the Trump campaign. But Giuliani suggests a loss could be a stepping stone to the Supreme Court. Democrats insist it is already well past time for President Trump to move on.

SEN. DICK DURBIN (D-IL): The President did not won the election, he lost the election. And the official recount in Georgia and other places, I'm sure will demonstrate that. It's time for us to move forward.

ROBERTS: In Georgia, more good news for President Trump today, another missing memory card this one in Fayette County, reducing Joe Biden's margin by another 449 votes. The Biden still leads by nearly 13,000 statewide.

And South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham suddenly in the spotlight after meeting with Georgia Secretary of State on Friday, now fending off accusations of election interference.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): No, that's ridiculous. I talked to him about how you verify signatures.

ROBERTS: President Trump also hoping to exploit vote discrepancies in Clark County, Nevada that will force a special election for a county commissioner seat.

President Trump tweeting, the all Democrat county commissioner race on same ballot as president, just thrown out because of large scale voter discrepancy. Clark County officials did not have confidence in their own election security. Major impact.

ROBERT O'BRIEN, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: President Trump ran on a promise to put a stop to America's endless wars.

ROBERTS: As the election challenges play out, President Trump today making good in a campaign promise to draw down troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He's Acting Secretary of Defense and national security adviser announcing that as of January 15th, troop levels in both countries will be reduced to

2,500 personnel.

O'BRIEN: By May it is President Trump's hope that they will all come home safely and in their entirety.

ROBERTS: The drawdown has sown divisions between the White House and Pentagon, the former Defense Secretary Mark Esper showing the door after opposing it.

Congressman Adam Kinzinger, telling Fox News, it appears to contradict President Trump's own complaints about his predecessor.

REP. ADAM KINZINGER (R-IL): I think it's pretty nonsensical. I mean, I'm having a hard time seeing what the difference is between this and the mistake President Obama made in 2011 to leave Iraq.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS (on camera): And President Trump personally stepping in today after a decision was made to cancel the annual Wreaths Across America event at Arlington National Cemetery because of coronavirus. The President tweeting today "I have reversed the ridiculous decision to cancel Wreaths Across America at Arlington National Cemetery. It will now go on." That event scheduled for December 19th, Bret.

BAIER: John Roberts live on the North lawn. John, thanks.

The Iraqi militaries has four rockets have struck inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone. At least two people wounded there. The attack suggests an end to an informal truce announced by Iran-backed militias in October. It comes after an announcement by the Pentagon that it would reduce troop levels in Iraq from 3,000 to 2,500.

President-elect Joe Biden received a national security briefing today, but it was from his own people and former military leaders, not the Trump administration or current brass. This comes as Biden announces new additions to his White House team. Additions that some of Biden's supporters are not too happy about. Correspondent Peter Doocy is following all of it tonight from Wilmington, Delaware.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS CHANNEL CORRESPONDENT (Voice over): Even though Joe Biden is pitching an estimated $10 trillion in new federal spending to address climate change and health care and universal preschool.

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: If I'm elected and this passes, I'm going to be good to go down as almost progressive presidents in American history.

DOOCY: Some progressives are already upset that new White House hires include a former pharmaceutical lobbyist for clients who don't favor Medicare for All, Steve Ricchetti. And a lawmaker whose congressional campaign received tens of thousands of dollars from executives at fossil fuel companies, Cedric Richmond.

A representative for justice Democrats now warns, if Joe Biden continues making corporate friendly appointments to his White House, he will risk quickly fracturing the hard earned goodwill his team built with progressives to defeat Donald Trump.

Richmond was the Democratic team's star pitcher for years in the annual congressional baseball game. But some congressional Democrats are fine with Biden bringing Richmond and Ricchetti aboard.

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): Both of them I believe will be phenomenal additions to a Biden presidency and administration.

DOOCY: And in Louisiana, Richmond is already preparing for the West Wing is the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association and the American Nurses Association writes to President Trump, all information about the capacity of the Strategic National Stockpile, the assets from Operation Warp Speed, and plans for dissemination of therapeutics and vaccines needs to be shared as quickly as possible.

REP. CEDRIC RICHMOND (D-LA): We should be getting briefed on that so that we can offer our input and we can be ready on day one that the vaccine is ready to distribute it logistically.

DOOCY: National security briefings haven't started either, so the president-elect hosted a Zoom call with national security experts.

BIDEN: You know that I've been unable to get the briefings that ordinarily would have come by now.

DOOCY: As allies elsewhere wonder if they're about to be in the mix.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And am I talking to the next Secretary of State?

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): You're talking to an engaged senator from Delaware who is looking forward to the transition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOOCY (on camera): Also on Capitol Hill today, the vice president-elect was spotted fist bumping and elbow bumping with some Republican colleagues who came to say congrats, but there may have been more to it because the vice president-elect told our crew on Capitol Hill today that she is very involved in selecting Cabinet nominees ahead of some difficult Cabinet confirmation votes next year. She may have also been working the refs, Bret.

BAIER: Peter Doocy, thank you.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office says he had a warm conversation with Joe Biden today. Netanyahu had congratulated Biden and running mate Kamla Harris in a tweet November 8th. But until today, the Prime Minister had avoided referring to Biden as president-elect.

A statement from the Biden team said the president-elect reiterated his steadfast support for Israel's security and its future as a Jewish and Democratic state. Biden also spoke with the Israeli president.

The top executives with tech giant's Twitter and Facebook were on defense against senators of both parties today up on Capitol Hill at a hearing before the Judiciary Committee. Complaints had to do with censorship, political bias and the enormous power the social media companies wield.

Correspondent Gillian Turner takes a look tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GILLIAN TURNER, FOX NEWS CHANNEL CORRESPONDENT (Voice over): Republicans on the Senate Judiciary panel went all in on accusations that anti- conservative bias has infected every aspect of Twitter and Facebook. They also noted the irony of Twitter's ban on New York Post stories about Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings.

SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): You do realize that by taking down that story, you probably gave it more prominence and more visibility than it ever would have gotten had you left it alone.

JACK DORSESY, CEO, TWITTER: We realize that, and we recognize it as a mistake.

TURNER: Democrats though, say it's conservatives who are getting a pass on social media.

SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): How many times is Steve Bannon allowed to call for the murder of government official, will you commit to taking down that account?

MARK ZUCKERBERG, CEO, FACEBOOK: No. That's not what our policies would suggest that we should do.

TURNER: Republicans argue to the real problem with social media's role in the presidential election is the left.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): There was a time when Democrats embraced and defended the principles of a free press. And yet, there's an absolute silence from Democrats speaking up for the press outlet censored by big tech.

TURNER: Ditto for political violence on the platforms.

SEN. MIKE LEE (R-UT): The only violence that I'm aware of has occurred in connection with the Antifa.

TURNER: The other prominent issue today, the hundreds of warning labels slapped on Trump posts during the election. Something Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says is a drop in the bucket compared to the 300,000 posts flagged overall.

ZUCKERBERG: I believe this was the largest election integrity effort by any private company in recent times.

TURNER: But Democrats are arguing the exact opposite, warning labels don't go far enough.

SEN. DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D-CA): Voter fraud garnered more than 300,000 interactions on your platform in the hours after Mr. Trump falsely declared victory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TURNER (on camera): In one very heated exchange, Senator Josh Hawley pressed Mark Zuckerberg about these new allegations that Facebook sometimes coordinates with Google and Twitter. Zuckerberg insisted that they do coordinate on some security measures, but not on anything related to content moderation, Bret.

BAIER: Gillian, thank you.

More than 166,000 new COVID-19 cases were reported over the most recent 24- hour period. Johns Hopkins University says that brings the total in the U.S. to more than 11-1/4 million.

Also tonight, the longest serving Republican in the Senate says he has tested positive for the virus. Iowa's Chuck Grassley did not say how he was exposed to COVID-19. The 87-year old has not missed a vote since 1993.

Michigan's governor insist she has the authority to issue a second stay at home order to curb the spiking coronavirus if necessary. Governor Gret -- Gretchen Whitmer's latest directive goes into effect tomorrow.

Correspondent Garrett Tenney reports tonight from Lansing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GARRETT TENNEY, FOX NEWS CHANNEL CORRESPONDENT (Voice over): Tonight, could very well be the last time Joey Armadillos Bowling Alley opens its doors.

MARK GODSEY, OWNER, JOEY ARMADILLOS: In my whole life, I never thought my government would tell me I have to close.

TENNEY: Bowling alleys, casinos and theaters all closed when Michigan's new restrictions begin tomorrow. Indoor dining won't be allowed, organized sports are suspended, and all schooling will be remote for at least the next three weeks.

JAMIE BROWN, MICHIGAN NURSES ASSOCIATION: The restrictions are absolutely necessary right now. The pandemic is out of control. Nurses are at their breaking point, so any help the public can give us would be great.

TENNEY: Across the country, new restrictions on indoor gatherings are impacting Thanksgiving plans.

In Seattle, shoppers cleaned out store shelves buying toilet paper and paper towels ahead of the state's new limit on store occupancy.

Michigan is limiting gatherings to two households. Ohio is adding a 10:00 p.m. curfew and in Chicago, city leaders are asking folks not to travel and to limit their celebrations to immediate family.

That doesn't appear to apply to Illinois governor J. B. Pritzker though, who is dodging questions about reports his family will be celebrating in Florida.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Since you live in Chicago, I mean, are you going to follow the no travel advisory that Mayor Lightfoot put into place at 6:00 a.m. this morning?

GOV. J. B. PRITZKER (D-IL): Yes, I don't know what that says exactly. And I don't know exactly what my plans will be, but I'll certainly -- you know, be happy to.

TENNEY: While state leaders are urging the public to cancel plans and avoid travel, some elected officials from both parties are spinning this week on the shores of Maui. Nearly 20 lawmakers from California, Washington and Texas are reportedly attending an annual conference sponsored by The Independent Voter Project at a luxury beachside resort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TENNEY (on camera): Even as the pandemic rages, there are some encouraging signs, new research from the University of Washington suggests the fatality rate for COVID-19 has dropped by nearly a third since April due to improve treatments as doctors over time have learned which treatments tend to be the most effective, Bret.

BAIER: Garrett Tenney live in Lansing. Garrett, thanks.

The Senate has rejected President Trump's nominee to the Federal Reserve Board. Judy Shelton was controversial among Democrats, some Republicans for wanting to return the U.S. to the gold standard. The White House remains confident Sheldon will be confirmed upon reconsideration.

The Dow fell today 167, the S&P 500 lost 17, the NASDAQ dropped 25.

Republicans continue to chip away at the Democratic majority in the House.

Former pro-football star Burgess Owens has defeated Democratic incumbent Ben McAdams for a four seat GOP sweep in Utah. That puts the current balance of power at 219 for Democrats won over the majority and 204 for Republicans. 12 races remain undecided and Republicans lead in 10 of those uncalled races so far.

As the focus of the next few weeks in national politics centers squarely on the senate runoffs in Georgia, this evening we examine the increasing role of people from outside the state. Correspondent Jonathan Serrie reports this evening from Atlanta.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JONATHAN SERRIE, FOX NEWS CHANNEL CORRESPONDENT (Voice over): Winning both Georgia seats would give Democrats partisan control of the U.S. Senate should President Trump's legal challenges fail. A prize that has attracted a flood of out of state donations for Democrats.

Raphael Warnock has received 80 percent of his contributions from outside Georgia, 83 percent for Jon Ossoff.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, they're spending millions more for him because he could help them jam through their radical agenda.

SERRIE: Today, two pro GOP super PACs launched their first attack ads in the Georgia's Senate runoffs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A national defund the police radicals are flocking to Georgia to support Warnock.

SERRIE: Former White House deputy chief of staff and Fox News contributor Karl Rove is leading a Republican fundraising effort to protect the seats of senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue.

KARL ROVE, FOX NEWS CHANNEL CONTRIBUTOR: I'm confident, at the end of the day, we'll both have sufficient money, and our team will spend it better.

But nobody should kid themselves, we are going to be outspent in Georgia, no ifs and or buts.

SERRIE: According to The Washington Post, Republican leaders, in a private call with donors, expressed concern about striking a balance between loyalty to President Trump, and the impact, his apparent defeat will have on the Georgia races.

When asked about the article, a Perdue campaign spokesman echoed his comments to The Post. "As we have said from the beginning, this runoff is all about turnout. Senator Perdue has been President Trump's strongest ally in the Senate, and we're proud to have his support in this race.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERRIE (on camera): And with the nation's eyes on the Senate runoffs in Georgia, state officials are warning that they will vigorously prosecute anyone who falsely claims residents to vote.

Now, earlier, Andrew Yang raised some eyebrows when he said he would move to the state to help Democrats, but he later specified that he would be campaigning and canvassing, but not voting in Georgia. Bret?

BAIER: Jonathan Serrie live in Atlanta. Jonathan, thank you.

Up next, why the bosses at Target removed the book from their shelves, and then, replaced it after a backlash?

First, here is what some of our Fox affiliates around the country are covering tonight. WSVN in Miami, where concerns about the coronavirus in jail emerge as the latest roadblock in the death penalty case against Nikolas Cruz.

He is accused of the 2018 massacre that killed 17 people at a Florida high school. Defense attorneys say they want written health safety procedures for the Broward County Sheriff's Office before Cruz's lawyers and mental health experts enter the jail to evaluate him.

Fox 46 in Charlotte as the fossil skeletons of two dinosaurs intertwined in what looks like a final deathmatch are being donated to a North -- a North Carolina museum. The tyrannosaurus rex and triceratops known as the dueling dinosaurs were buried together 67 million years ago.

And this is a live look at Los Angeles from our affiliate Fox 11. One of the big stories there tonight, Universal Pictures strikes another deal with a major theater chain in an effort to adapt to the new business realities of moviegoing.

Universal and Cinemark have reached a multi-year agreement that guarantees three full weekends or 17 days of theatrical exclusivity before a film can become available to rent on demand.

That is tonight's live look "OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY" from SPECIAL REPORT.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BAIER: A breakthrough tonight for the U.S. military. Senior Pentagon officials say, for the first time, a missile interceptor launched from a navy ship at sea hit and destroyed a mock ICBM in flight.

Previous tests against such targets had used interceptors launched from underground silos on land. The director of the Pentagon's missile defense agency calls the result an incredible accomplishment and critical milestone for that program.

There is controversy tonight over a book removed from the shelves at Target and then replaced. It has to do with a very sensitive subject and has given rise to considerable backlash.

Senior political correspondent Mike Emanuel explains tonight. Good evening, Mike.

MIKE EMANUEL, FOX NEWS CHANNEL CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Bret, good evening. The book is about teenage girls undergoing medical transition too fast with too little oversight. And the author says, cancel culture tried to ban her book. The book's title, Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters, it documents the risks of what could be hasty life-changing decisions.

Its author, Abigail Schrier, explained her view in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece writing, "I think mature adults should have the freedom to undergo medical transition. But teenagers are another matter. Social contagions exist, and teen girls are particularly susceptible to them."

She goes on to argue, "In another era, the girls might have fallen prey to anorexia or bulimia." The author explained the issue in an interview with our Tucker Carlson.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABIGAIL SCHRIER, AUTHOR, IRREVERSIBLE DAMAGE: We're now seeing two percent of high school students, most of whom are teenage girls, claiming to be transgender. So, we know this is a very, very large spike that doesn't seem to make sense. And even stranger, it's clustered in friend groups. Teenage girls are coming out with their friends. So, we know this is socially driven.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EMANUEL: Target took heat on Twitter for the book. "I think the trans community deserves a response from AskTarget as to why they are selling this book about the transgender epidemic sweeping the country. Trigger warning. Transphobia."

It was temporarily banned by Target, the company reversed course after backlash. All the attention has made it a bestseller for LGBT books. Bret.

BAIER: Mike, thank you.

Up next, questioning some of the questioners. Look at how the mainstream media is treating Joe Biden as compared to President Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have you spoken to your longtime friend in the Senate, Mr. McConnell?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you tried to reach out at all to the president?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At the end of the day, do you want him to concede?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BAIER: Joe Biden has indicated unions will have a lot more say in his administration. But not everyone in the business world thinks that's a great idea. Correspondent Mark Meredith looks at both sides tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: I'm a union guy. Unions are going to have increased power.

MARK MEREDITH, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice over): President-elect Joe Biden says he's a proud supporter of America's labor unions. it's welcome news for groups like the AFL-CIO, which said, after the election, its members are, "hungry for a bigger voice in our economy and our politics."

Biden has promised to strengthen public and private sector unions even as union membership has decreased in recent years.

The labor department reports in 2019, 14.6 million workers, roughly 10 percent of earners were union members, that's down from 20 percent of the workforce in the early 1980s.

AARON WITHE, NATIONAL DIRECTOR, FREEDOM FOUNDATION: Joe Biden is a tool for organized labor.

MEREDITH: Aaron Withe is with Freedom Foundation, a group that encourages public and private sector employees not to join unions. He argues increasing union memberships now may kill small businesses struggling to survive.

WITHE: What unionization would do to these businesses; it would make them pay for things they can't afford. They can't afford to hire more employees, they can't afford to increase employee's wages right now, they're struggling just to stay open.

MEREDITH: But Biden's campaign says empowering unions levels the playing field for workers. Under his plan, the government would raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, hold corporate executives personally accountable for violations of labor law, incentivize collective bargaining, and strengthen workplace protections.

During his call with labor leaders Monday, Biden also spoke with CEOs of some of America's largest companies, including G.M. and Target. A potential sign corporate America is willing to work with the president-elect for now, as the debate over potential new labor laws gets underway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MEREDITH (on camera): The Biden administration's labor strategy may depend on who's chosen as labor secretary. Among the names floating around, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, and Michigan Democratic Congressman Andy Levin. Bret?

BAIER: Mark, thanks.

Well, you can make the case, so far, President-elect Biden has largely been given a pass by the mainstream media. Some media who cover media noted that, exhibit-A was Monday's news conference.

Fox news media analyst and host of Fox's "MEDIA BUZZ" Howard Kurtz, shows us tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

HOWARD KURTZ, FOX NEWS MEDIA ANALYST:  An NBC reporter set the tone at Joe Biden's news conference yesterday by asking him about Donald Trump.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  What do you see is the biggest threat to your transition right now given President Trump's unprecedented attempt to obstruct and delay a smooth transfer of power?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:  What is your message to Republicans who are backing of the president's refusal to concede?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:  At the end of the day, do you want him to concede?

KURTZ:  These journalists, handpicked by the Biden team, inviting him to attack the president provided a striking contrast to the negative, sometimes hostile questions regularly fired at Trump and Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:  You're the president. You're not like someone's crazy uncle who just retweets whatever.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:  On the campaign trail you called yourself a nationalist. Some people saw that as emboldening white nationalists.

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:  I don't know why you'd say that. That's such a racist question.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  What do you say to your critics who say that you are creating a national emergency, that you're concocting a national emergency here in order to get your wall?

TRUMP:  You're CNN. You're fake news. You have an agenda.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:  You're saying that he condemns it. I have his record right here.

KAYLEIGH MCENANY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY:  You need to let me finish.

It's quite funny that the media goes haywire about interrupting in debates and then chooses to pursue that very same tactic themselves.

KURTZ:  Reporters did ask Biden a half-dozen questions about future policies, recognizing a president-elect has no actual power until the inauguration. Biden was asked whether he'd take a COVID vaccine and cautioned families against Thanksgiving travel. But he wasn't asked about leftwing violence against Trump supporters at a weekend rally in Washington.

With Biden planning to restore the daily press briefings, his events look different, reporters low-key and socially distanced than the noisy, tight scrum that usually surrounds Trump.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

KURTZ:  Journalists are undoubtedly relieved at the prospect of a president who doesn't attack them as an enemy of the people, but if they are soft on Biden, many Trump supporter's will conclude their negative approach to the current president has been personal and political. Bret?

BAIER:  Howie, thanks.

Up next, the panel with the Trump team's latest maneuvers in court about the election.

First, beyond our borders tonight. Greek police detained several people and fired tear gas during scuffles in Athens. Hundreds of protestors defied a ban on gatherings of more than three people to mark the anniversary of the crushing of a 1973 student uprising against the military junta then ruling Greece.

The first passengers to take part in United Airlines free coronavirus testing program traveled from Newark to London. The airline is offering rapid tests to every crew member and passenger over the age of two on select flights from Newark to Heathrow through December 11th. The flight is the first major effort to navigate international quarantine restrictions while the industry tries to weather this pandemic.

The navies of the U.S., India, Australia, and Japan hold exercises in the northern Arabian Sea. It's the second phase of a naval drill seen as part of a regional initiative to counter China's growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.

Just some of the other stories beyond our borders tonight. We'll be right

back.   

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOE BIDEN, (D) PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE:  I've been unable to get the briefings that ordinarily would have come by now. To state the obvious, there's no presidential responsibility more important than protecting the American people.

SEN. DICK DURBIN, (D-IL) SENATE MINORITY WHIP:  If humoring the president means that you are basically going to mislead the American people about the results of the election, it's just plain wrong.

MITCH MCCONNELL, (R-KY) SENATE MAJORITY LEADER:  There's a way to deal with disputes. It's called the courts. And the courts in the various states are dealing with whatever disputes there are, whatever evidence may be provided. And we're going to have an orderly transfer from this administration to the next one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BAIER:  There you see some of the back and forth as the Trump team continues to fight in court in Pennsylvania, in Nevada, other places as well.

Meantime, the government agency designed to overlook the infrastructure of elections, to police it, is the CISA. Chris Krebs is the director. He tweeted out, "On allegations that election systems were manipulated, 59 election security experts all agree in every case of which we are aware these claims have been unsubstantiated or are technically incoherent." And it's "Protect 2020" is the hashtag for the government effort there.

Let's bring in our panel, former White House press secretary, Ari Fleischer, Amy Walter, national editor for the "Cook Political Report," and Ben Domenech, publisher of "The Federalist." Ben, let me start with you.

The Trump campaign is still launching these efforts. Obviously, they have every right to fight these battles, but so far they have not been successful. Is there a path that you've heard or seen where they may be?

BEN DOMENECH, "THE FEDERALIST":  I don't know about a path if the definition of success is reelecting President Trump and sending him back to the White House for another term. I do think that there are a lot of interesting and significant questions that have been raised across the board about our elections in a number of different areas in accordance with, I think, a responsible approach to this. It should be adjudicated in the courts.

One thing to keep in mind about all of this is it's not like this is the last election we're going to have. We're going to have an election in 2022.

We're going to have an election in 2024. We might have a significant role for mail-in ballots then. And I think that it's incumbent upon all of these officials involved to really approach this with seriousness because we need both parties to feel like the issues here were adjudicated in responsible ways, that they had a transparent approach at the end of the day and could be confident in it.

One of the things I think, frankly, that we should be grateful for at this moment is that the margins are not closer in lot of these states. As you saw in Georgia, finding new ballots that had not been included in the in the initial count there, a total that looks to be close to nearly 5,000 -- imagine a scenario where the vote was closer there and where there was just obsessive coverage of what was going on. I think that we should be grateful in this instance that there aren't more questions.

BAIER:  Yes, and speaking of Georgia, obviously that spread even after the found votes is still greater than it is in other places. But you have the secretary of state, Ari, of Georgia, a Republican coming out, and he says, this is the "Washington Post," "Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Monday that he has come under increasing pressure in recent days from fellow Republicans, including Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who he said questioned the validity of legally cast absentee ballots in an effort to reverse President Trump's narrow loss in the state. Here is Senator Graham responding to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM, (R-SC):  That's ridiculous. I talked to him about how you verify signatures. Right now a single person verifies signatures, and I suggested as you go forward, can you change it to make sure that a bipartisan team verifies signatures, and if there is a dispute, come up with an appeals process.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  Why is a senator from South Carolina calling the secretary of state of Georgia anyway?

GRAHAM:  Because the future of the country hangs in the balance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BAIER:  Ari, your thoughts on all this.

ARI FLEISCHER, FORMER WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY:  There isn't a secretary of state in this country who should call this pressure when they are just getting a question. After every close election, every secretary of state's job is to shoulder the burden of explaining very transparently exactly what went right and what went wrong. And for them to say for one party is there to pressure or for the media to interpret it as pressure is really out of bounds.

And secretaries of state know that. They have hard jobs and they're going to get challenged from all sides, especially the side that came up short.

And so it comes with the territory. I think it's a perfectly legitimate question. But what we all have to look at here is what can happen going forward. And I think Ben is on to it. We have an election in Nevada that's going to get redone this cycle because the vote was so close, a 10 vote difference, that they don't have confidence in the election. I certainly went through that in Florida in 2000 when it was a 500 vote difference.

Every election should lead to learning how to do it better from the next election, and no one should fear question.

BAIER:  Amy, you have now this next process, which is the certification of the vote happens in each state, sometimes happens down to the county, and then eventually the state has electors that are seated for the Electoral College. You have instances now that are popping up, for example in Wayne County, Michigan, where they are deadlocked, and they are not -- they're essentially refusing to certify the vote even though it's not really close on the numbers when it comes to Michigan. Your thoughts on that?

AMY WALTER, NATIONAL EDITOR, "COOK POLITICAL REPORT":  These arguments are absolutely ridiculous. I have interviewed before this election numerous Republican, Democrat election officials. They worked under incredibly difficult circumstances to make sure this election, one held in a pandemic, was done accurately and transparently. Nobody can argue that. There has not been one instance of fraud that has been found. These are baseless accusations. This is undermining our democracy. This is calling into question the actual people who are doing this work day in and day out.

The elections will be certified, the electors who are selected will go and vote. Joe Biden will be selected as the president of the United States, and this needs to stop. This is dangerous, this is not just simply let's let the courts figure it out. This is saying to people, spreading all of these conspiracies and rumors about machines and people changing votes -- it is dangerous, and it should stop.

BAIER:  Yes, Ari, your thoughts on that?

FLEISCHER:  I don't think asking questions is dangerous.

WALTER:  It's not asking questions, Ari. It's not asking questions.

FLEISCHER:  I think asking questions actually leads to better election outcomes -- I think asking questions leads to better outcomes in the next election. For example, in Nevada, the machines that are supposed to match the signature to the significant on file was set at a 40 percent threshold.

In other words, a lot of signatures that didn't really match well got through. Why was it at 40? Why not at a higher threshold? So there are legitimate questions that should always be asked. And I don't think anything is going to overturn the Donald Trump election, the margin is too high. But his is called good government. We should all want to find out.

WALTER:  It's preventing the transition --

BAIER:  Amy, to your point, though, there is an end to it. The courts can go through the process -- 

WALTER:  There needs to be an end to it.

BAIER:  But there will be. There has to be. There is a date by which they have to certify, and then the electors have to be seated December 14th.

Last word here, Ben?

DOMENECH:  I just think that it's really important for us to have confidence in an election where we had so many rule changes, so many efforts to try to make this mail-in balloting work in various, Amy says it, an intense time, one where there was a lot of context that made everything more difficult. I think that's why these questions are emerging.

I think if you had a system that maybe looked a little bit more like Florida after they made the changes that they did in the wake of their negative experiences, we might have more confidence overall in the result.

And I think it's important everybody does have confidence in the result.

And I think that we are going to get there. It's not even going to take as long as it did in the case of Ari's experience in 2000.

BAIER:  When we come back, we are going to talk about Georgia, the runoff down there, plus big tech up on Capitol Hill. Keep it here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS FRIEDMAN, "NEW YORK TIMES" COLUMNIST:  What is McConnell telling us?

He wants your scalp in the game, OK. That's what he wants. He is already telling us he is going to try to do to Biden what he did to Obama, and what that means is -- I hope everybody moves to Georgia in the next month or two, registers to vote, and votes for these two Democratic senators.

BRAD RAFFENSPERGER (R) GEORGIA SECRETARY OF STATE:  Just to come in for an election and bebop out of here after the election -- no. We are going to prosecute, and we're going to work in concert with our attorney general, and he put notice to that same effects. That would be voter fraud, and it's severe penalties come up to $100,000 fine, 10 years in prison.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BAIER:  The Georgia secretary of state responding to calls for somebody to move into Georgia for the two runoffs there, two Senate runoffs with the balance of power really hanging in the balance January 5th. And there you see the contenders. Back with the panel. Ari, this is going to be a battle royal in Georgia, money, focus, pretty much everything.

FLEISCHER:  It sure is. And there's a history of this in Georgia. After many presidential races, because of Georgia's laws we've gone to runoffs. I remember after Bill Clinton defeated George H. W. Bush in 1992 there was a runoff a couple months later, and a Republican --

BAIER:  Paul Coverdell.

FLEISCHER:  Paul Coverdell, that was the pattern in Georgia. I could go down the line. It keeps happening, and that's because you have a huge turnout in the presidential that brings out many more Democrats, and then you have much more intensity of the Republican turnout in the special election.

And they've got a lot to work with. Some information just came out about Democratic candidate Warnock calling police bullies, thugs, and gangsters.

He questioned the Second Amendment. And then they found a sermon he gave in

2011 in which he said you can't serve God and the military. I guess he's saying that if you're in the military, you can't be religious. So there's a lot Republicans that can work with in this cycle, and that's just in that one race alone.

BAIER:  Those videos popping up in recent days. Amy, the graphic we just put up there is the House balance of power, 219 to 204. There are still 12 races not called yet. But right now, Republicans are leading in 10 of them.

That majority is pretty slim for Nancy Pelosi if it goes as it's projected to go. As it stands now, she might only be able to lose three seats before she loses the majority on any bill.

WALTER:  It's looking like right now the majority, maybe it's six or seven seats for Democrats. That is a very slim majority. Republicans lived with that very narrow majority, I remember, in the late 90s, early 2000s and were able to hold onto it until 2006. But the bigger question for Democrats going forward is, we know there's a history in midterm elections of the party in the White House losing seats in that next election in the House and in the Senate. And those seats that will be in danger are some of the ones that Democrats barely held onto in some of those suburban swing districts where increase in turnout I think did help in some cases, but it also hurt them in some of the races that they did lose. So 2022 could be a really problematic election for Democrats if history repeats itself.

BAIER:  Obviously, Republicans outperformed all the projections going in to Election Day.

Last thing, Ben, big tech up on Capitol Hill again. And a lot of questions about the pre-election efforts of the Hunter Biden story. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN CORNYN, (R-TX) SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE:  You do realize that by taking down that story you probably gave it more prominence and more visibility than it ever would've gotten had you left it alone.

JACK DORSEY, TWITTER CEO:  We realize that, and we recognize it as a mistake that we made, both in terms of the intention of the policy and also the enforcement action of not allowing people to share it publicly or privately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BAIER:  Ben, mistakes are easier to talk about after the election.

DOMENECH:  Bret, I would encourage all of your viewers to go back and look at the clinic that Senator Josh Hawley put on in his questioning of Mark Zuckerberg about a number of different things, particularly the invasion of privacy of different Facebook members, a tool that they use internally that tracks people across not just for what they say on Facebook, for what they say on other sites as well, coordinating across big tech in terms of determining what to ban and who to clamp down on.

This is going to be a big issue, and one of the big factors here is actually going to be the tension between Justice Democrats and the like putting out a statement today criticizing the Biden presidential elect group for having too many people related to big tech in their orbit, too many people from corporate America. That is going to be a tension that I think we see play out on both sides of the aisle, but it's going to be very pronounced when it comes to Democrats and the ability of leadership to try to find ways to satisfy progressives who are just as critical of big tech for a lot of other reasons as well.

BAIER:  This big tech story is a big one that has a lot of different tentacles that we'll continue to follow. Panel, thank you very much.

When we come back, celebrating some big wins.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BAIER:  Finally tonight, celebrating as a team.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:  Will you be mine forever?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:  Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BAIER:  In a surprise adoption proposal, Dawn Phillips gives 17-year-old Ashanti a parent to call her own. The pair then joined 29 other families in a drive-by parade to commemorate the adoption of 50 foster children in Tampa in recent days.

There's nothing quite like high school football in Texas. Have you ever been there? It's really quite something. On the first play of Friday's game in Austin, coaches and players from competing schools agreed to let Vandegrift team manager Tommy Hartman score a 49-yard touchdown on senior night. You see Hartman, who has autism, celebrated with his teammates in style. Congratulations to them.

Thanks, everybody for inviting us into your home tonight. That's it for the SPECIAL REPORT. Fair, balanced, and unafraid. "THE STORY" hosted by Martha McCallum starts right now.

Hey, Martha.

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