The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Dec. 18, 2025

The U.S. Justice Department filed suits December 12th to compel Massachusetts, Colorado, Hawaii and Nevada to turn over voter registration records, including citizenship records and personal data.  Delaware, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington were sued December 2nd, bringing the total to 18. 

DOJ confirmed in September that it is amassing the data in a central database and sharing it with the Department of Homeland Security. To date, only Indiana and Wyoming have fully complied, according to a tracker by the Brennan Center for Justice.  

In a statement concerning the latest suits, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said:  “States have the statutory duty to preserve and protect their constituents from vote dilution.  If states will not fulfill their duty to protect the integrity of the ballot, we will, ” UNQUOTE.  A study of the states President Trump accused of widespread illegal voting during the 2016 election found non citizen voting was an almost non-existent .0001%.   

Two GOP-run states, Nebraska and South Carolina, filed for state injunctions to prevent election officials from releasing the information.  Maine requested its case be dismissed on protected speech grounds, and a class action lawsuit by voters and the League of Women Voters argues the database is a direct violation of the 1974 Privacy Act. 

We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl. 

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

American Democracy Minute – Justice Department Sues Maine & Oregon for Withholding State Voter Registration and Voting Data from Trump Administration
American Democracy Minute – Class Action Suit by Voters Claims Personal Data Shared to the Trump Administration’s SAVE Database Violates the Privacy Act of 1974
U.S. Department of Justice – Justice Department Sues Four Additional States and One Locality for Failure to Comply with Federal Elections Laws
U.S. Department of Justice – Justice Department Sues Six Additional States for Failure to Provide Voter Registration Rolls
Brennan Center for Justice – Tracker of Justice Department Requests for Voter Information
Brennan Center for Justice – Noncitizen Voting: The Missing Millions
Maine Morning Star – Maine asks court to throw out DOJ lawsuit seeking access to sensitive voter data

Groups Taking Action:

League of Women Voters,C.R.E.W., Electronic Privacy Information Center,  Fair Elections Center

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

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#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #USDOJ #NonCitizenVoting #PersonalData #TrumpAdministration #PrivacyAct

The post U.S. DOJ Sues MA, CO, HI and NV to Turn Over Voter Registration Files, but Even Red States are Pushing Back appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Oct. 23, 2025

A lawyer who had multiple phone calls with President Donald Trump the day of the January 6th insurrection has been appointed by the President to investigate debunked allegations that widespread fraud changed the outcome of the 2020 election.  He has 130 days as a “special government employee” to complete his assignment.

The Wall Street Journal reported October 17th that Kurt Olsen, a product liability attorney turned Trump 2020 election lawyer, was appointed to look into President Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen.  According to the January 6th Select Committee report, it was Olsen who drafted a memo on January 2nd, entitled “The Role of the VicePresident in Receiving Votes from the Electoral College,” and he spoke with Trump three times on January 6th. 

The Detroit News reports that Olsen has recently been involved in defending another Trump election lawyer, Stephanie Lambert, from accusations she and others tampered with Michigan electronic vote tabulators.  He defended U.S. Senate and Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake in her baseless challenges to the 2022 election.  A judge sanctioned Olsen for QUOTE, “false, misleading, and unsupported factual assertions,” though his fines were later dismissed.   

Two good government groups, States United Democracy Center and Lawyers Defending American Democracy later, later filed ethics complaints in Maryland and Washington, DC for an alleged QUOTE “Pattern of unethical conduct.”  

We’ve linked to more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol –
Final Report of the Select Committee 
Select Committee – Select Committee Demands Information from Witnesses Who Promoted Unsupported Claims of Election Fraud
CNN – New York Times: Conservative lawyer suggested to Trump he take steps akin to declaring ‘martial law’ to overturn election results
Kansas Reflector (Opinion) – Trump’s lawyers in suits claiming he won in 2020 are getting punished for abusing courts
Detroit News – (Paywall) – 2 Trump-tied lawyers step into 2020 Michigan election cases

Michigan Advance – Proceedings again postponed for Michigan attorney charged in tabulator tampering case
States United Democracy Center and Lawyers Defending American Democracy – Ethics Complaint Against Kurt Olsen

Groups Taking Action:

States United Democracy Center,  Lawyers Defending American Democracy

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

Want ADM sent to your email?  Sign up here!

Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #KurtOlsen #DonaldTrump #January6th #Insurrection #MikePence

The post Lawyer Advising Trump During January 6th Appointed to Rehash the President’s 2020 Election Fraud Claims  appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Sept. 11, 2025

Did the dog catch the car?  We have election denier legal trouble involving voting dogs, former election officials claiming they’re political prisoners, and 2020 fake electors who claim they didn’t know what they were doing was wrong. 

A Costa Mesa, CA woman trying to demonstrate mail-in voter fraud was arraigned September 9th for fraudulently registering her dog Maya to vote, then casting a mail ballot in two elections in 2022.  Laura Lee Yourex self-reported her scheme in 2024, and posted a picture of Maya with an “I Voted” sticker.  She faces up to six years in prison.

Bridge Michigan reports that a circuit court judge dismissed felony charges against Michigan’s GOP fake electors Sept. 2nd.   The judge ruled the state failed to prove the electors knew that signing and sending the alternative presidential slate of electors to the U.S. Senate was illegal.  Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessell has not ruled out an appeal.

Colorado Newsline reports that Mesa County clerk Tina Peters, convicted by a jury of four felonies relating to tampering with her county’s election machines, filed a federal habeas corpus claim in federal court asking to be released on bond pending appeal. Her attorney calls Peters a “political prisoner.”  The state argues the federal government doesn’t have jurisdiction and the case should be dismissed.

We have links to the local reporting at  AmericanDemocracyminute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Orange County District Attorney’s Office – Costa Mesa Woman Charged with Five Felonies for Illegally Registering Her Dog to Vote, Casting Mail-in Ballots Sent to Dog in Two Elections
American Democracy Minute – In Michigan, State AG Charges 16 Fake Electors, Voting Machine Tampering Case Moves Forward
Bridge Michigan – Michigan false electors case dismissed, Nessel not ruling out appeal
American Democracy Minute – CO Election Official Tina Peters Got 9 Years for Tampering with Election Machines to Prove the Big Lie.  Trump is Trying to Set Her Free.
Colorado Newsline –  Colorado AG asks court to dismiss Tina Peters’ habeas corpus petition 
The Daily Sentinel – Prosecution reiterates claim Tina Peters is ineligible for release

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #Colorado #TinaPeters #Michigan #FakeElectors #California #ElectionDeniers 

The post Voting Dogs, Habeas Corpus and Fake Electors:  Updates on Election Deniers and Their Legal Jeopardy appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Aug. 20, 2025

On Truth Social August 18th, President Donald Trump threatened to end the use of mail-in ballots and voting machines in the United States, claiming it was responsible for massive voter fraud.  There is no evidence of widespread fraud from either, and the U.S. Constitution grants states control of the “Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections.”  

After a widely-panned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, plummeting approval ratings and continuing fallout from the Epstein files, the post is more likely intended to shore up support among his hard core MAGA base.  

Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, QUOTE, “I am going to lead a movement to get rid of MAIL-IN BALLOTS, and also while we’re at it, Highly ‘Inaccurate,’ Very Expensive, and Seriously Controversial Voting Machines.”  He continued later in the post that “WE WILL BEGIN THIS EFFORT . . .  by signing an EXECUTIVE ORDER to help bring HONESTY to the 2026 Midterm Elections,” UNQUOTE. 

The dominant type of voting machine, electronic ballot tabulators, are less expensive and far more accurate than hand counting.

In the post and in an Aug. 15th Sean Hannity interview, Trump also claimed the U.S. was the last country to still use mail-in ballots. PolitiFact reports there are 34 countries where mail balloting is used.  

We have the text of the Truth Social post, the U.S. Constitution’s elections clause, and a transcript of the Hannity interview at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Truth Social – Post by President Donald Trump Threatening to End Use of Mail-In Voting and Voting Machines
U.S. Congress – U.S. Constitution:  ArtI.S4.C1.2 States and Elections Clause
Axios – Trump raises end to mail-in ballots after claiming Putin questioned their security
PolitiFact – Trump said the US is the ‘only country’ that uses mail-in voting. That’s wrong.  
Roll Call – Transcript of Aug. 15, 2025 Interview with Sean Hannity
Brennan Center for Justice – Hand-Counting Votes: A Proven Bad Idea
MIT Election Data & Science Lab – Voting by mail and absentee voting
U.S. Postal Inspection Service – Election Mail Security
Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency – Statement from CISA Director Easterly on the Security of the 2022 Elections
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Voting System Security Measures

Groups Taking Action:

National Vote at Home Institute, Protect Elections

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ProtectElections #Trump #ExecutiveOrder #Disinformation

The post President Trump Threatens Executive Order to End Voting by Mail and Use of Voting Machines appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for March 18, 2024

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

We reported extensively last year on the alleged tampering of electronic vote tabulators in Michigan following the 2020 election.  The first of three trials is imminent, but after failing to appear at multiple court hearings, one election-denier defendant faces even more charges.

Reuters reports that Stephanie Lambert Junttila was part of a team of lawyers connected to Sidney Powell, who led former President Trump’s court challenges of the 2020 Presidential election results.   She was allegedly in the room when Matthew DePerno, a candidate for Michigan attorney general, and Daire Rendon, a Michigan state representative, attempted to access the data in a Dominion Voting Systems electronic ballot tabulator in a suburban Detroit hotel room.  The three were charged with conspiracy and unlawful possession of a voting machine  last August.

Trials were originally scheduled for early March.   But according to the Michigan Advance,  Lambert Junttila, failed to appear for two pre-trial hearings, and an Oakland County judge issued an arrest warrant March 8th.   Reuters later reported that March 13th, while under indictment and subject to an arrest warrant, she was in a Washington, D.C. courtroom, representing former Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne against Dominion Voting Systems’ $1.6 Billion dollar defamation lawsuit. Dominion sued Byrne for allegedly pushing the debunked theory that Dominion’s ballot tabulators had manipulated the election for Joe Biden. 

Lambert Junttila’s trial is scheduled to begin April 1st.    

We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Reuters – (2022) The Michigan lawyer pushing Trump’s voter-fraud fictions in U.S. courts
Michigan Advance – (2023) Republicans Matt DePerno and Daire Rendon charged in 2020 voting machine probe
Michigan Advance – Judge sets March trial date in Michigan voting machine tampering case
Michigan Advance – One voting machine tampering cases moves to trial, two others await consideration
Michigan Advance – Warrant for Lambert Junttila remains as she misses another hearing in tabulator tampering case
Reuters – Ex-Overstock CEO taps indicted pro-Trump lawyer as defense counsel in Dominion lawsuit

Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #ElectionDeniers #MichiganPolitics #TrumpCriminalTrials #VotingMachineTampering

The post ‘Election Integrity’ Gone Bad:  Updates on Michigan’s Electronic Ballot Tabulator Tampering Cases appeared first on American Democracy Minute.