Accusations that President Donald Trump was considering sending armed federal agents to monitor polling places amounted to "fearmongering, false statements," Attorney General Todd Blanche said.
Blanche rejected claims that Justice Department election monitors deployed for the midterms would be armed federal agents, saying federal monitoring of elections is a longstanding practice intended to ensure voting laws are followed.
"I wish that the senators and the congressmen that are saying these fearmongering, false statements would just not do that," Blanche said. "It's not fair to the American people."
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The attorney general said the Justice Department has safeguarded elections since the 1960s and argued that the Trump administration is continuing work performed under previous administrations.
Blanche made the comments on "Fox News Sunday" while responding to concerns raised by Democrats, including Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.
In June, Baldwin joined several Senate Democrats in introducing the Protect Our Polls Act, which would require congressional approval before a president could deploy troops or federal law enforcement personnel to election sites.
Baldwin accused Trump of weighing whether to send "armed federal agents to our schools, churches, fire stations, and other polling locations."
Blanche called that characterization "completely false."
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