Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon defended the Trump administration’s examination of noncitizen voters as the midterm elections approach. Her comments were made during a segment on CBS’ “60 Minutes.”
“There are people who feel that the point is to sow distrust about the whole election system. There are very few people who are noncitizens who end up voting — very few. And so, therefore, what’s the purpose?” host Lesley Stahl asked Dhillon.
Dhillon countered this perspective, emphasizing that the investigation’s intent is to restore trust in the electoral process. She pointed out that thousands of noncitizen voting cases are under review, noting that the Biden administration has also prosecuted such cases.
Stahl highlighted that the numbers involved are small, to which Dhillon responded that the investigations have been ongoing for over a year and are extensive. She stated that many cases are being examined.
Dhillon addressed criticism about the Trump administration’s scrutiny of voter rolls. She described the method as a “broken windows” enforcement strategy, prioritizing every discoverable instance of illegal voting. This marks a notable change from previous administrations, following revelations about noncitizens appearing on New Jersey voter rolls.
Her remarks followed New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s revelation that thousands of noncitizens were inadvertently registered to vote due to the motor-voter system.
On “60 Minutes,” Dhillon dismissed the notion of using Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at polling sites. Concerns about potential challenges to election results were labeled as “paranoia.”
Dhillon clarified that noncitizen voting should not lead to a challenge of an entire election but could challenge individual votes. She assured there should be no unforeseen disruptions in the vote-counting process.
A DOJ spokesperson supported this stance, emphasizing the importance of prosecuting fraudulent voting to maintain electoral integrity. The Department aims to bring numerous election fraud cases weekly.
Dhillon expressed her dissatisfaction with CBS, claiming on social media that much of her contribution was edited out.