"His trashing of the democratic process, in service of his own ego, risks lasting damage to the country," The New York Times wries. | Getty NYT, Washington Post, WSJ denounce Trump's refusal to accept election results

Major newspapers rebuked Donald Trump’s unprecedented refusal to say he will accept the results of the election Wednesday.

In the aftermath of the third and final presidential debate, The New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal hammered the Republican presidential nominee for his “contempt for” and “breathtaking repudiation of American democracy.”


The New York Times editorial board said Trump insulted “the intelligence of the American voter” and “American democracy itself” in Wednesday’s debate.

Trump, who has claimed without evidence that the election is rigged against him, went a step further by suggesting he may not accept the outcome on Nov. 8.

“What I’m saying is that I will tell you at the time,” Trump told debate moderator Chris Wallace. “I’ll keep you in suspense, OK?”

His opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton, responded by calling his position “horrifying” and ripping him for always claiming things that don’t go his way are rigged.

“Mr. Trump’s meltdown in the closing weeks could be dismissed as a sore loser’s bizarre attempt at rationalizing his likely defeat. But his trashing of the democratic process, in service of his own ego, risks lasting damage to the country, and politicians of both parties should recoil from him and his cynical example,” the Times editorial board warned.

The Washington Post’s editorial board conceded that Trump showed more self-control than he did in the first two debates and even had a more substantive discussion with Clinton.

“But all of that was overshadowed by Mr. Trump’s breathtaking refusal to say that he will accept the results of the election,” the Post wrote.

The Wall Street Journal called Trump’s refusal his “biggest mistake,” noting that he made it worse by offering to leave the country “in suspense.”

“That again is Mr. Trump’s ego talking, a man who doesn’t like to lose refusing to take responsibility for his campaign. Voters on the right and left want to have faith in the electoral system,” its editorial board said. “Mr. Trump’s statement makes us wonder if Mr. Trump and adviser Steve Bannon are planning to blame everyone else if he does lose.”

The presidential election was poised for a Republican victory, the Journal said, adding that a torn, unhappy nation wanted to move in a new direction.

“Even Mr. Trump, after all his mistakes, had essentially tied the race before the first debate,” the Journal said. “Win or lose in three weeks, the result will be one that he has earned.”