Playing his standard role of information gatekeeper, ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos abruptly shut down Sen. JD Vance, (R-Ohio) on Sunday during an exchange about whether a U.S. president “must abide by legitimate Supreme Court rulings,” as Stephanopoulos phrased the issue.

Naturally, Donald Trump was the topic of discussion as the ABC News anchor hit the Republican senator with one trap question after another in the hope of scoring a controversial soundbite that could harm the leading Republican presidential candidate or his party.

“The Constitution says that the Supreme Court can make rulings, but if the Supreme Court ― and look, I hope that they would not do this, but if the Supreme Court said the president of the United States can’t fire a general, that would be an illegitimate ruling and the president has to have Article 2 prerogative under the Constitution to actually run the military as he sees fit,” Vance said.

“This is just basic constitutional legitimacy,” he continued. “You’re talking about a hypothetical where the Supreme Court tries to run the military. I don’t think that’s going to happen, George. But of course, if it did, the president would have to respond to it. There are multiple examples throughout American history of the president doing just that.”

ABC News “This Week” anchor George Stephanopoulos abruptly shut down Sen. JD Vance on Sunday during an exchange about whether a U.S. president “must abide by legitimate Supreme Court rulings.” pic.twitter.com/8njzj4m4Bs

— BPR based (@DumpstrFireNews) February 5, 2024

“You didn’t say military in your answer, and you made it very clear you believe the president can defy the Supreme Court,” Stephanopoulos replied, putting words in his guest’s mouth and quickly shutting him down from responding. “Senator, thanks for your time this morning.”

“No, no, George…,” Vance protested before his audio was cut.

Stephanopoulos brought up the E. Jean Carroll judgment and played an ad from the anti-Trump grifters at Lincoln Project to elicit a response from Vance.

Here’s a sampling of the “gotcha” journalism on display, “You call it a ridiculous case. These were juries that found him liable for sexual assault and defamation. That’s ridiculous?”

“These are juries, George, in extremely left-wing jurisdictions,” Vance responded. “These are cases that are very often funded by left-wing donors, and they’re cases that are funded explicitly to harm him politically, not to seek justice for any particular group of individuals.”

The hostile ABC News anchor summarized that exchange thusly, “So you’re not troubled by the sexual assault and defamation. Let me ask you about January 6th.”

Vance on what he would’ve done on January 6: “If I had been VP I would’ve told the states like Pennsylvania, Georgia, and so many others that we needed to have multiple slates of electors, and I think the US Congress should’ve fought over it from there.” pic.twitter.com/TaBPYmFOYq

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 4, 2024

Another example, which led to Stephanopoulos cutting Vance’s audio, was a focus on remarks Vance made on a 2021 podcast about how Trump should clean house if he were to be reelected in 2024.

“I think that what Trump should do, like if I was giving him one piece of advice, fire every single mid-level bureaucrat, every civil servant in the administrative state, replace them with our people. And when the courts – because you will get taken to court – and then when the courts stop you, stand before the country, like Andrew Jackson did, and say the chief justice has made his ruling, now let him enforce it,” Vance said on the podcast.

“Fire everyone in the government, then defy the Supreme Court. You think it’s OK for the president to fire the Supreme Court?” Stephanopoulos asked, ignoring that Vance clearly said “mid-level bureaucrat.”

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Tom Tillison

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The longest-tenured writer at BizPac Review, Tom grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills.

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