Joe Biden is ultimately going to declare victory for himself, despite saying the media does not decide the president, and "he will get away with that," according to political insider Mark Halperin on Newsmax TV.
"If enough states are projected by the media, even though the media is not the government, if enough states are projected to get him over 270, you can bet he will declare victory and they'll start the balloons and the champagne," Halperin told Wednesday's "Spicer & Co."
"The media's invested in that and they want Biden to win. They told the world Biden would win."
President Donald Trump and his campaign want to "slow things down" before Biden is projected to get to 270 "to look to make some Trump luck," Halperin told host Sean Spicer.
"Joe Biden can't come out and declare victory," Halperin said, in order to stick to his own words the media cannot call the election.
"'I'm not declaring victory until I declare victory, and I'll declare victory when I can declare victory.' Because he knows, if he does that before he gets to 270 electoral votes by media projections, that people will say, 'well, you're getting ahead of the voters.'
"That's one of the president's few weapons right now as he looks to get himself to 270."
States do not certify election results for weeks, Spicer noted.
"Well, by that standard, he's going zero," Halperin responded. "Because there's not a state in the union that certified their votes and made them formal.
"But if he gets to 270, you're right, it's logically inconsistent. He can't say, 'it's not about the media,' and then rely solely on the media. But I am pretty certain, and I think the president's people will agree, he will get away with that in many quarters.
"He will be able to do exactly the opposite of what he said, which is to say he'll rely on the media projections to say he's won."
Halperin noted, as in Bush versus Gore, the race to 270 gives the candidate the "upper hand."
"The hourglass is wholly dependent on not getting to 270 for Biden, because the minute that happens, the president's going to be given less leeway by the press, and I think less leeway by some Republicans," Halperin concluded.
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Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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