Speaking during an interview with NBC News’s Kristen Welker, Trump’s 2024 running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, tore into Welker for what he characterized as her constantly trying to bait him into giving bad answers to her ridiculous, “gotcha” style questions instead of conducting an informative interview.
Vance’s epic outburst came when Welker kept pressing him on whether he agreed with former President Donald Trump’s suggestion that the Department of Justice, under a Trump presidency, could “go after” President Joe Biden. Vance, though obviously frustrated with the questioning and media’s characterization of Trump’s idea, said that he wasn’t opposed to the idea.
That tense part of the interview came when Welker asked Senator Vance about using DOJ personnel to go after the Biden family. Doing so, Welker asked Vance, “Senator, if former President Trump were to win, would you support him appointing a special prosecutor to go after his political enemies, the Bidens?”
Vance, responding, fired back by saying that there’s nothing wrong with using the DOJ to investigate suspected wrongdoing. He said, “Well, first of all, Kristen, I find it interesting how much the media and the Democrats have lost their minds over this particular quote. Donald Trump is talking about appointing a special prosecutor to investigate Joe Biden for wrongdoing.”
Continuing, he noted that the Biden Administration has done the lawfare thing Welker was freaking out about Trump doing, saying, ” 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, commenting on the obvious wrongdoing that makes a DOJ investigation necessary, “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. Of course, you have to investigate to find out.”
On that same point, he added, “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. 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?”
Not done, Welker then 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. A jury of his peers in New York found him to be guilty. 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.”
Vance wasn’t having it. Firing back, he characterized her defense of the Biden Administration as ridiculous, saying, “I would absolutely support investigating prior wrongdoing by our government. Absolutely. 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 and 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 added, “And of course, 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.”
Welker again tried defending the behavior of the Biden Administration, saying, “Senator, that happens all the time. People are appointed from Washington…The DOJ told Congress this week it reviewed all communications since Biden took office and found no contact between federal prosecutors and those involved with that case in New York. Can you stick to the substance of the question, though? Let me just ask, because I just want to stick with this line of theory that you are laying out, which is you are saying it’s not okay for Joe Biden to weaponize the Justice Department if it’s not okay for Joe Biden to weaponize the Justice Department, as you say, and there’s no evidence of that. Why is it okay for Donald Trump to do that?”
Vance shot back, “Well, Kristen, first of all, you said that it happens all the time, but the number three person in the Department of Justice jumped ship to join a local prosecutor’s office to go after the president’s political opponent. I don’t think that’s ever happened in the history of American democracy, and I don’t think that we should legitimize it.”
He concluded, “Now, if Donald Trump’s attorney general had this, his number two or his number three would have jumped ship to a local prosecutor’s office in Ohio or Wisconsin, and that person would then go 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.”
