Transcript: Mitch McConnell Says President Trump is “100% Within His Rights” to Investigate Voting Irregularities

Mitch McConnell: (00:00) So it's time. Let's talk about where we are now. According to preliminary results, voters across the nation elected and re-elected Republican senators to a degree that actually stunned prognosticators. Likewise, the American people seem to have reacted to House Democrats' radicalism and obstruction by shrinking the speaker's majority and electing more Republicans. Mitch McConnell: (00:28) And then there's the presidential race. Obviously, no states have yet certified their election results. We have at least one or two states that are already on track for a recount. And I believe the president may have legal challenges underway in at least five states. Mitch McConnell: (00:49) The core principle here is not complicated. In the United States of America, all legal ballots must be counted and illegal ballots must not be counted. The process should be transparent or observable by all sides, and the courts are here to work through concerns. Our institutions are actually built for this. We have the system in place to consider concerns, and President Trump is 100% within his rights to look into allegations of irregularities and weigh his legal options. Mitch McConnell: (01:31) Let's go back 20 years ago. 20 years ago when Florida came down to a very thin margin, we saw Vice President Gore exhaust the legal system and wait to concede until December. More recently, weeks after the media had called President Bush's re-election in 2004, Democrats baselessly disputed Ohio's electors and delayed the process here in Congress. In 2016, election law saw recounts or legal challenges in several states. Mitch McConnell: (02:07) If any major irregularities occurred this time of a magnitude that would affect the outcome, then every single American should want them to be brought to light, and if the Democrats feel confident they have not occurred, they should have no reason to fear any extra scrutiny. We have the tools and institutions we need to address any concerns. The president has every right to look into allegations and to request recounts under the law. And notably, the Constitution gives no role in this process to wealthy media corporations. The projections and commentary of the press do not get veto power over the legal rights of any citizen, including the president of the United States. Speaker 2: (03:11) The biggest stories the moment they happen from around the globe. Subscribe to Bloomberg Quicktake now for insight in an instant.