1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

GOP Senator Dan Sullivan is in trouble in his race against Democrat Mary Peltola. In the open primary she got 49.5 percent to his 41. But there’s also a third candidate on the ballot named Dan J. Sullivan who got 2.5 percent. The state tried to remove him, arguing he was a spoiler put there to confuse voters. The Alaska Supreme Court said there was no evidence of that, and Dan J. Sullivan stayed on. The ballot lists his middle initial and makes clear which Dan Sullivan is the Republican incumbent. The DOJ wasn’t satisfied. On Thursday night, with early voting already underway, they sued the state of Alaska to block it from certifying the result if Peltola wins, claiming that the second Sullivan will skew the results. An election law professor called it “one of the worst legal arguments I’ve ever seen.” The incumbent said he didn’t ask for the intervention. So why did the DOJ step in? On Friday, the president fessed up, telling reporters “I’m the one that said do it.” Normally, the DOJ would never run with such a weak case, but Blanche follows orders and is Trump's personal attorney, in the clothing of an attorney general. Our nation’s top law enforcement official works for a 34x (and counting) felon. Very reassuring. Let’s be clear about what’s happening. The president ordered Blanche to file a lawsuit with little to no legal basis because he’s worried about losing Alaska. Blanche didn’t ask questions. And it’s not just Alaska. Blanche told reporters the DOJ is looking at states across the country for fraud. In other words, for a reason to intervene. This time around, Trump is not waiting to lose before he cries fraud. He’s marking the seats he needs, and sending his loyalist DOJ to plant the seeds. Stay aware, but don’t be intimidated. Get out there and vote. To borrow a phrase from the president: let’s make this one too big to rig.