A star ABC News anchor, George Stephanopoulos, is facing accusations of hypocrisy and bias after praising Democrats for prolonging the government shutdown, only to later deny having once called Republicans “basically terrorists” for doing the same thing during the 1995 government shutdown.
Mr. Stephanopoulos, a former celebrity Democratic operative who served in the Clinton White House during the contentious 1995 government shutdown, has recently criticized Republicans for refusing to negotiate the extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies to reopen the government.
However, on Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confronted Mr. Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “This Week” about comments he made regarding Republicans in 1995. During that government shutdown, Mr. Stephanopoulos was a top adviser to President Clinton.
“You were involved in a lot of these in the ’90s,” Mr. Bessent said. “You know, you basically called the Republicans terrorists and, you know, you said that it is not the responsible party that keeps the government closed.”
Mr. Stephanopoulos responded, “I can disagree with you about the history there, but we don’t have a history lesson right now.”
Mr. Bessent countered, “No, no, no. George. If you want, I’ve got all your quotes here. I got all your quotes here, George.”
The ABC News host tried to move on, saying dismissively, “I’m sure you do.”
Not missing a beat, Mr. Bessent added a jab, “I read your book, so you got one purchase on Amazon this week,” before continuing, “And that’s very much what you said.”
Mr. Bessent’s comments appeared to reference an interview Mr. Stephanopoulos gave to PBS in 2000. In that interview, the former Clinton aide stated:
“Our strategy was very simple. We couldn’t buckle, and we had to say that [Republicans] were blackmailing the country to get their way. In order to get their tax cut, they were willing to shut down the government, throw the country into default for the first time in its history, and cut Medicare, Social Security, education, and the environment just so they could get their way. And we were trying to say that they were basically terrorists, and it worked.”
It remained unclear what Mr. Stephanopoulos believed Mr. Bessent had misrepresented.
ABC News did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
### Conservative Reactions
Conservatives were quick to accuse Mr. Stephanopoulos of lying about his stance on handling government shutdowns.
Conservative radio host Scott Hennen posted on X, “There are many things to admire about @realDonaldTrump’s team but one of my personal favorites is calling out the corrupt regime media! @ThisWeekABC is a tool of the left.”
Conservative media commentator Joe Concha wrote, “This is EXACTLY how you handle this. George is a Democratic operative to this day. Use his own words and actions against this pious anchor.”
Jasmine Hauser, another conservative commentator, stated on X, “George @ThisWeekABC Stephanopoulos is a liar. Always lying to cover for the Clintons & Democrats, & smear Republicans.”
One user asked, “Hey @ThisWeekABC why do you continue to let George spew this sort of nonsense on the air when it is easily debunked?”
Another user said, “Scott Bessent came prepared to read George Stephanopoulos’ quotes from the past back to him to clear up what Stephanopoulos called a ‘mischaracterization of history’, but he didn’t want to hear them. Let’s move on. It’s amazing that Stephanopoulos still has a job.”
### Context of the Interview
The interview between Mr. Bessent and Mr. Stephanopoulos occurred hours before eight Democrats in the Senate broke with their party to vote alongside Republicans, clearing a key procedural hurdle—a major step toward reopening the government.
Mr. Stephanopoulos faced heavy criticism at the start of the shutdown for what some called an “embarrassing” question to House Speaker Mike Johnson. During an October interview, Mr. Stephanopoulos repeated Democrats’ talking points as fact, stating:
“The Democratic proposal is designed to prevent millions of Americans from losing their health insurance, losing Medicaid coverage, or paying higher healthcare premiums. Why are you against that?”
While Mr. Stephanopoulos insisted it was a “factual” statement, Mr. Johnson called the remark “absurd,” arguing that Republicans wanted to pass a “clean, nonpartisan continuing funding resolution” to keep the government open.
Throughout the shutdown, Republicans maintained that Democrats should vote to fund the government and address healthcare subsidies separately, casting the two issues as unrelated.
### Past Controversies and Criticism
Mr. Bessent’s interview with Mr. Stephanopoulos comes amid repeated criticisms that the ABC News host displays a left-wing bias.
Last year, Disney paid President Trump $16 million to settle a lawsuit he filed against the entertainment giant after Mr. Stephanopoulos falsely and repeatedly claimed on his Sunday morning program that Mr. Trump had been “found liable for rape.”
Mr. Stephanopoulos was also criticized in October for abruptly ending an interview with Vice President JD Vance after the VP disputed a left-wing MSNBC report alleging that the Trump administration’s border tsar, Tom Homan, took a bribe.
Following that interview, Mr. Trump snubbed an ABC News reporter and stated he would not answer their questions due to Mr. Stephanopoulos’s treatment of Vice President Vance.
### Salary and Ratings
Mr. Stephanopoulos is believed to earn $25 million a year at ABC, hosting “Good Morning America.” However, the program recently lost its ratings lead to archrival “Today,” which consequently forced out co-host Hoda Kotb after she refused an enormous pay cut.
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*This article will be updated as more information becomes available.*
https://www.nysun.com/article/stephanopouloss-clinton-past-back-haunt-him-accused-lying-hypocrisy-defending-democrats-shutdown