Veteran Republican political consultant Roger Stone has come under fire following the release of a secret recording in which he discusses potential measures to ensure Donald Trump secures victory in the 2024 presidential election. The audio clip, captured by progressive filmmaker Laura Windsor, has provoked outrage among Democrats and drawn attention within the Republican Party.
The recording, taken during a "Catholics for Catholics" event at Mar-a-Lago on March 19, reveals Stone outlining strategies involving "lawyers, judges, [and] technology" to challenge the results of the upcoming election if necessary. Stone emphasized the need to take steps to prevent President Joe Biden from winning, claiming that the election "can be stolen again" from the Republicans.
"We're working on that," Stone said to Windsor when asked how the GOP planned to secure Trump's victory. "Lawyers, judges, technology." In a separate conversation with Windsor's colleague, Ally Sammarco, Stone reiterated these plans, stating, "At least this time when they do it, you have a lawyer and a judge-his home phone number standing by-so you can stop it."
This is not the first time Stone has been implicated in controversial election tactics. In August 2023, footage obtained by MSNBC showed him discussing a plan to install a group of fake electors to reflect that Trump had won the 2020 election in states where results were allegedly denied to him "through fraud."
NEW UNDERCOVER inside Mar-a-Lago: Trump Ally Roger Stone’s Plan to Win Election Relies on Judges and Courts pic.twitter.com/SNdcdCqcl7 — Lauren Windsor (@lawindsor) June 18, 2024
Stone has dismissed the backlash over the recent recordings, describing the reports as a "nothing-burger story attacking me in [a] desperate bid for clicks," on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Why do leftists so fear a free, fair, honest, transparent 2024 election?" he added.
The audio clip has sparked a range of reactions from political figures and commentators. Democratic Texas state representative Gene Wu sarcastically remarked, "That's fine. We're good as long as he's not trying to get actual voters to vote in order to win elections." James Reyes, chair of the Democratic Party of Denver, said, "These people cannot be allowed power and we can stop them by overwhelming turnout at the ballot box."
Alex Aronson, executive director of Court Accountability, voiced concerns about the broader implications of Stone's comments. "Roger Stone is working on 'lawyers, judges, technology' to 'use every lever we can' to deliver this election for Trump," he wrote. "We need to be clear-eyed now about SCOTUS's central role in their scheme."
Anthony Davis, a host on the liberal news network MeidasTouch, warned of potential chaos. "Do not discount the rigged electoral college system and the MAGA plan to undermine the judiciary from the inside to change the outcome of the election," he said. "It's going to be very messy. They want to cause chaos, so voters don't know who to believe."
In a statement to Rolling Stone, Stone defended his remarks, stating, "All of the election integrity provisions that I suggested are perfectly legal and should be part of any ballot security effort."
The controversy deepened as Stone predicted that Judge Aileen Cannon, who is overseeing Trump's classified documents case, would dismiss the charges altogether. "We are beating them," Stone said, referencing Trump's legal battles. "[Democrats] want to try him, suck up his money, suck up his time, and create the reason why their theft is plausible, believable."
These remarks were made before Trump was tried and found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records in New York. Sammarco, reacting to the recording, questioned Stone's knowledge about Judge Cannon's intentions. "He really begs the question: How does he know Aileen Cannon is 'on the verge of dismissing the charges against Trump?'" she posted on X. "Also, the obvious question: What judges does he have on speed dial?"
Stone's statements have intensified the debate over election integrity and the measures being discussed by political operatives to influence the 2024 presidential race.
