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Exclusive: Trump ground game in key states flagged as potentially fake (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 4 weeks ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world
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Data suggests canvassers linked to Elon Musk’s America Pac falsely claimed to have visited homes of potential voters

Donald Trump's campaign may be failing to reach thousands of voters they hope to turn out in Arizona and Nevada, with roughly a quarter of door-knocks done by America Pac flagged by its canvassing app as potentially fraudulent, according to leaked data and people familiar with the matter.

The potentially fake door-knocks -- when canvassers falsely claim they visited a home -- could present a serious setback to Trump as he and Kamala Harris remain even in the polls with fewer than 20 days to an election that increasingly appears set to be determined by turnout.

The Trump campaign earlier this year outsourced the bulk of its ground game to America Pac, the political action committee founded by Musk, betting that spending millions to turn out Trump supporters, especially those who don't typically vote, would boost returns.

But leaked America Pac data obtained by the Guardian shows that roughly 24% of the door-knocks in Arizona and 25% of the door-knocks in Nevada this week were flagged under "unusual survey logs" by the Campaign Sidekick canvassing app.

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[-] Zaktor@sopuli.xyz 39 points 4 weeks ago* (last edited 4 weeks ago)

It is a moral good to take a job with a Republican door-knocking operation run by a loser billionaire and just pretend to work without doing anything. Lie to them and say whatever you need to make them think you're excited for the job, then just don't do it. You'll probably get fired, but you'll do a service for democracy by taking up space and/or siphoning some ill-gotten funds from bad people. And it's a short enough gig it will never be noticed if you don't put it on your resume.

[-] Makeitstop@lemmy.world 7 points 4 weeks ago

I wonder what safeguards they would have to stop someone from taking their money and then going around and canvassing for Harris?

[-] Zaktor@sopuli.xyz 4 points 4 weeks ago

Their lists are going to be targeted at likely Republicans, so they wouldn't have much value to Harris. Apparently there's GPS logging, so you either fake that or maybe can find some Democratic houses in the same neighborhood.

[-] Makeitstop@lemmy.world 9 points 4 weeks ago

Actually, you probably could get a fair amount of traction by going to those houses and just saying shit like "they thought they could beat Trump on January 6th but once he's back in office, he's promised to pardon the J6 patriots and send the justice department and military out to get even with the traitors that tried to take him down." Just remind people of the worst shit Trump has said and done in a way that doesn't associate you with the Democrats.

You could even have a bad response ready for each issue, like how "he's going to fix inflation with tariffs, because it was those other countries disrupting supplies that made inflation, so we'll tax the stuff they bring in to teach them a lesson." Anyone who agrees with you was probably a lost cause, but there will also be quite a few who find your pitch deeply unappealing. And best of all, you could use real Trump quotes to make the whole thing legit.

You'd probably get fired if anyone finds out, since I assume there's a script and/or talking points you're supposed to follow. But they clearly aren't keeping close tabs on the actual work being done, just locations, so who knows.

[-] Zaktor@sopuli.xyz 2 points 4 weeks ago

Yeah, you might be able to pull that off, but you'd have to really deftly manage to be both unsettling enough to make less extreme Republicans exasperated with Trump while not being so obviously bad at outreach that someone calls the campaign to complain. Though the truth is so out there there's a lot of room for just being "passionately offputting" where a short-staffed operation might just assume you need a reminder about the script.

[-] MrMcGasion@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

As someone who grew up in Christian-Nationalist churches and circles, just dress like a Jehovah's Witness or like a young Ben Shapiro. Even if someone does call to complain, they will describe 70% of the people there and they'll probably address it as a gentle reminder to all the canvassers in a meeting rather than one on one. At which point someone more right-wing will stand up for everything because they actually believe every one of the policies are good things, and everyone will think they were the problem, not you.

[-] acid_falcon@lemmy.world 5 points 4 weeks ago

Hmm I'm a technically registered as Republican (registered 15+ years ago, and I never bothered to change it) and I've done some android programming, I know how to spoof my location...

[-] ashok36@lemmy.world 28 points 4 weeks ago

I'm in central Florida. In 2016 and 2020 there were plenty of trump signs and shit all over. Today, Except for one billboard on i-275 complaining about grocery prices, there's really nothing. Enthusiasm for Trump, even among his diehards, has seriously waned.

I understand it too. I felt the same way about Biden before he dropped out. Yeah, I was still gonna vote for him but... I certainly wasn't gonna be over the moon to do so. Compared to kamala who I'm actually happy to vote for. The Republicans schlonged themselves I think.

[-] gsfraley@lemmy.world 12 points 4 weeks ago* (last edited 4 weeks ago)

I'm in PA and a lot of parts are still pretty hot for Trump (lots of big signs, every conversation is an opportunity for them to talk about their undying devotion, etc.). That is NOT to say that it's unwinnable, but we really need to put the pedal on to keep the pace, since the default answer here is leaning back toward Trump.

Edit: That said, we're one of the most important swing states this cycle, so not surprised things are just more political in general.

[-] RagingRobot@lemmy.world 4 points 4 weeks ago

I just drove from Orlando to Atlanta and was surprised to see a bunch of Harris billboards. I only saw one trump one and it was in Atlanta actually lol. He is not well liked here in the city so idk why they wasted money on that.

[-] Wytch@lemmy.cafe 25 points 4 weeks ago

There is no lie too petty for these weirdos

[-] Notyou@sopuli.xyz 12 points 4 weeks ago

Is there a business in selling fake polling data to political campaigns? They spend so much money on all this shit. I need to figure out a way to get money out of politics.

[-] Glytch@lemmy.world 7 points 4 weeks ago

Probably, but you'd have to build your name as a reputable pollster (maybe by hiring pollsters from actually reputable polling companies) before turning to this or no one will buy your fake polls.

[-] Makeitstop@lemmy.world 4 points 4 weeks ago

While no one is knowingly paying for fake polls, there is big money to be made in sketchy, rigged polls. Partisan polling firms have been doing it for decades.

I'm fairly certain it's no coincidence that a a lot of low quality polls from less than reliable polling firms started bumping numbers up for Trump. And right around the time that someone dropped 30 million into the betting markets to shift the odds to favor Trump. And that both of these coincide with the ramping up of Musk's involvement.

[-] ryan213@lemmy.ca 11 points 4 weeks ago

Lololololololol

[-] Linktank@lemmy.today 5 points 4 weeks ago

I'm shocked. SHOCKED! Well, not that shocked...

[-] bender223@lemmy.today 3 points 4 weeks ago* (last edited 4 weeks ago)

Wow, how funny. Elon really wants to help trump win, but he's too lazy to even make sure the work is being done. He's busy scrolling on twitter. But that's just how these jerks are. 🤷‍♂️

this post was submitted on 19 Oct 2024
193 points (95.3% liked)

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