US Attorneyr Bill McSwain
Image: DJHJ Media
As we know the 2020 Presidential Election in the US is a rather contentious issue. A mere few tens of thousands of votes across a few key states would have been enough for Trump to keep the presidency and for Biden to lose. And there are reports and various data anomalies associated with this election pointing at potential irregularities far in excess of that margin.
Against this background an allegation by a former US Attorney McSwain sounds especially poignant. McSwain claims that in his jurisdiction, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, there was sufficient evidence of potential election-related malfeasance to warrant an investigation but he was ordered by his boss, US Attorney General Bill Barr, not to pursue one. The allegation is contained in an alleged letter McSwain wrote to Trump which is available below:
June 9, 2021
Dear President Trump,
It was my great honor to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
in your Administration. You asked me to prioritize public safety, and that is exactly what
I did. While Larry Krasner, the radical leftist Philadelphia District Attorney, was letting
violent criminals go and refusing to prosecute rioters, looters, and arsonists, our Office was
putting them in jail and standing up for law-abiding citizens.
In the spring of 2020, I prosecuted and won an election fraud case against a Judge of
Elections in South Philadelphia who was stuffing the ballot box. I also charged the
political consultant (a former Democratic Congressman) who was paying bribes to the
Judge to stuff the ballot box.
President Trump, you were right to be upset about the way the Democrats ran the 2020
election in Pennsylvania – it was a partisan disgrace. The Governor, the Secretary of the
Commonwealth, and the partisan State Supreme Court made up their own rules and did not
follow the law. Even worse, the State Attorney General, Josh Shapiro – the very person
responsible for the enforcement of state election law – declared days before Election Day
that you could not win the election. It would be hard to imagine a more irresponsible
statement by a law enforcement officer, especially during a hotly contested election.
In light of such statements, it is hardly surprising that many Pennsylvanians lack faith
in our state’s election results.
On Election Day and afterwards, our Office received various allegations of voter fraud
and election irregularities. As part of my responsibilities as U.S. Attorney, I wanted to
be transparent with the public and, of course, investigate fully any allegations. Attorney
General Barr, however, instructed me not to make any public statements or put out any
press releases regarding possible election irregularities. I was also given a directive to pass
along serious allegations to the State Attorney General for investigation – the same State
Attorney General who had already declared that you could not win.
I disagreed with that decision, but those were my orders. As a Marine infantry officer,
I was trained to follow the chain of command and to respect the orders of my superiors,
even when I disagree with them.
Mr. President, public service is in my blood, and I would like to serve the people of
Pennsylvania and restore conservative leadership to our state. I will be the Republican
candidate for Governor with the best chance to win the general election in November 2022.
Based on my background and experience, I am uniquely positioned to defeat
Mr. Shapiro (the likely Democratic candidate) and would welcome the chance to discuss
this with you in person. I would be honored to have your support.
Once elected Governor, one of my first priorities would be to modernize Pennsylvania’s
election process and protect the right of all Pennsylvania citizens to cast a legitimate vote.
That means no ballot harvesting, undated ballots, unsigned ballots, ballots collected
after Election Day (other than legitimate military and overseas absentee ballots), obstacles
to poll watchers observing the counting of ballots, different rules in different counties,
and, of course, no ballot stuffing of the kind that I previously prosecuted. It also means
responsible voter ID legislation. Ensuring people’s confidence in elections should be
a nonpartisan issue. In short, we have a responsibility to make it easy to vote, but hard –
if not impossible – to cheat. That is how we respect the will of the people – and how
the best and most deserving candidates win.
Thank you for your consideration, and I hope to see you soon.
Very respectfully,
William M. McSwain
Former United States Attorney, Eastern District of PA, 2018-2021
I can not speak to McSwain's character - and, frankly, I am rather disinclined to trust a high level federal employee and a prosecutor to boot. But what he says just fits too well into the overall picture of corruption in government in which various entrenched interests found surprising unity in their efforts to drive out a populist who owed them nothing and viewed them as an impediment to his objectives. They wanted him out - potentially enough to disregard both the spirit and the letter of the law as well as the actual will of the electorate.
Sources
William McSwain (Wiki, archived 23 August 2021)
NUCLEAR BOMB: Former U.S. Attorney Bill McSwain to Trump: Bill Barr Forbid me From Investigating Voter Fraud
Steven Ahle, DJHJ Media, 13 July 2021
15 Million Votes in 2020 Election Not Accounted For, Report Finds
Fred Lucas, The Daily Signal, 19 August 2021