Biden chief of staff mocks Loeffler's plan to object to election certification

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Sen. Loeffler: Warnock’s values are ‘out of step with Georgia’

Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., slams Rev. Raphael Warnock’s ‘radical agenda,’ remains ‘confident’ she will win her race as the campaign enters the final stretch.

President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming chief of staff Ron Klain mocked Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler early Wednesday, while vote counts were still underway in the Georgia runoffs, for announcing her plan to object to the certification of Biden's win in November's presidential election.

A joint session of Congress to certify the Electoral College result is set to occur later Wednesday, just a day after the highly anticipated U.S. Senate runoffs pitted Loeffler against Democrat Raphael Warnock, and Sen. David Perdue against Democrat Jon Ossoff. The results in Georgia will determine which party controls the Senate in the new Congress.

"Spitballing here, but it may be that telling voters that you intend to ignore their verdict and overturn their votes from the November election was NOT a great closing argument for @KLoeffler," Klain tweeted, before the races were called.

Klain’s tweet came after Fox News first reported that Loeffler, who faced Warnock during Tuesday’s election, would object to the certification of Biden's victory in the presidential election results during a joint session of Congress on Wednesday.

LOEFFLER TO OBJECT TO ELECTION CERTIFICATION IN AT LEAST ONE STATE

A source familiar with the situation told Fox News that Loeffler planned to object to Georgia’s presidential election results.

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"Elections are the bedrock of our democracy and the American people deserve to be 100% confident in our election systems and its outcomes. But right now, tens of millions of Americans have real concerns about the way in which the November Presidential election was conducted — and I share their concerns," Loeffler said in a statement to Fox News on Monday.

"The American people deserve a platform in Congress, permitted under the Constitution, to have election issues presented so that they can be addressed," Loeffler continued. "That’s why, on January 6th, I will vote to give President Trump and the American people the fair hearing they deserve and support the objection to the Electoral College certification process."

Loeffler added that she has "already introduced legislation to establish a commission to investigate election irregularities and recommend election integrity measures.

"We must restore trust, confidence and integrity in our election system," Loeffler said.

Warnock and Loeffler were the two top finishers in their special Senate election Nov. 3, prompting Tuesday’s runoff contest. Loeffler had taken office Jan. 6, 2020, after being appointed by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to fill the remainder of Sen. Johnny Isakson's term after Isakson retired for health reasons.

More than a dozen other Senate Republicans have said they, too, will object to the certification of the Electoral College on Wednesday.

But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and Republican Sens. John Thune, John Cornyn, Tim Scott, Mitt Romney, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski, among others, have said they will vote to certify Biden's victory.

On the House side, more than 100 Republican members have said they will object to the certification of electors from Michigan, Nevada, Arizona, Wisconsin, Georgia, and Pennsylvania.

Meanwhile, President Trump on Tuesday said he and Vice President Mike Pence were "in total agreement" that Pence "has the power to act" and block the certification of the 2020 presidential election results on Wednesday.  

Trump went on to say that Pence has "several options under the U.S. Constitution."

TRUMP PUTS PRESSURE ON PENCE AHEAD OF ELECTION SHOWDOWN IN CONGRESS

"He can decertify the results or send them back to the states for change and certification," Trump said. "He can also decertify the illegal and corrupt results and send them to the House of Representatives for the one vote for one state tabulation."

A spokesman for Pence declined to comment.

Pence will preside over the joint session on Wednesday but is expected to play a mostly ceremonial role.

On Tuesday morning, the president insisted Pence had the power to overturn the election results.

"The Vice President has the power to reject fraudulently chosen electors," the president tweeted on Tuesday morning.

And Monday night, at an election eve rally in Georgia for the two GOP senators running in the state’s twin U.S. Senate runoff contests, Trump told the large crowd of supporters, "I hope Mike Pence comes through for us, I have to tell you."

"I hope that our great vice president – our great vice president, comes through for us. He's a great guy. Of course, if he doesn't come through, I won't like him as much," Trump emphasized.

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But White House officials told Fox News on Tuesday that Pence will "follow the law," saying that Pence is "taking a very diligent and studious approach to his job tomorrow." 

"He has consulted at length with staff. He has gone through the Electoral Count Act several times," an official said. "He has read legal opinions, met with the Senate parliamentarian and consulted with outside experts on the subject matter."

But those officials add that "the vice president will follow the law. He will act tomorrow with fidelity to the law and the Constitution."