Ohio Sen. JD Vance locked horns with NBC News anchor Kristen Welker over his support of former President Donald Trump’s vow to go after his political enemies if he is re-elected.
The Republican lawmaker, who is on the list of names as potential running mates for the presumptive GOP nominee, has been a vocal Trump supporter and has frequently called out the politically motivated lawsuits against him.
“Senator, if former President Trump were to win, if you were to be his vice president, would you support him appointing a special prosecutor to go after his political enemies, the Bidens?” Welker asked Vance on “Meet the Press” Sunday.
“Well, first of all, Kris, I find it interesting how much the media and the Democrats have lost their mind over this particular quote,” Vance replied.
“Donald Trump is talking about appointing a special prosecutor to investigate Joe Biden for wrongdoing. Joe Biden has done exactly that for the last few years and has done far more, in addition to that, to engage in a campaign of lawfare against his political opposition. I think what Donald Trump is simply saying is we ought to investigate the prior administration,” he added.
(Video Credit: NBC News)
“There are obviously many instances of wrongdoing. The House Oversight Committee has identified a number of corrupt business transactions that may or may not be criminal. Course, you have to investigate to find out. So I think Donald Trump saying, look, let’s do the basic work of investigating wrongdoing is a totally reasonable thing for him to do,” Vance posited.
“And frankly, the Biden administration has done far worse. So if you think that what Donald Trump is proposing is a threat to democracy isn’t what Biden has already done a massive threat to our system of law and government?” he asked.
“Senator, just to be very clear, though, Joe Biden didn’t appoint a special prosecutor, the attorney general did that. Trump was indicted by grand juries. He was found guilty by a jury of his peers in New York. But can we just go back to the core question here? Would you support him taking such an action? It sounds like you’re saying, yes, you would,” Welker pushed back.
“I would absolutely support investigating prior wrongdoing by our government. Absolutely,” Vance emphasized.
“That’s what you have to have in a system of law and order. Kristen. But I have to reject the premise here. Joe Biden appointed the attorney general, Merrick Garland, who, of course, answers to Joe Biden can be fired by Joe Biden. So the idea that the Biden administration has nothing to do with the appointment of the special prosecutor, I think completely betrays an understanding, a misunderstanding of how our system of government actually works,” he schooled the host.
“And of course, Kristen, we have to make this point, Kristen, that the prosecution of Donald Trump in New York, which I think now is fundamentally been thrown in doubt by this immunity case, it was one of the main guys was a Department of Justice official in the Biden administration who jumped ship to join a local prosecutor’s office to go after him…You question the legitimacy of the prosecution. That’s a problem,” he pointed out.
Welker claimed “That happens all the time” and told the senator to “stick to the substance of the question.”
The lawmaker questioned the premise that it is common practice, saying, “I don’t think that’s ever happened in the history of American democracy, and I don’t think that we should legitimize it.”
“Now, if Donald Trump’s attorney general had this, his number two or his number three jumped ship to a local prosecutor’s office in Ohio or Wisconsin, and that person then went after Donald Trump’s political opposition. That’s a different conversation. All he’s suggesting is that we should investigate credible arguments of wrongdoing. That’s all that Donald Trump is saying. That is not a threat to democracy. That’s merely reinforcing our system of law and government,” Vance explained.
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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