ABC's George Stephanopoulos outraged by Trump lawyer's claim about Biden pressuring DOJ: 'That is a ridiculous statement'
ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos and Trump attorney Jim Trusty clash over the indictment of the former president on his handling of classified documents.
Attorney for former President Donald Trump, James Trusty, upset ABC anchor George Stephanopolous on Friday after suggesting that Trump was being mistreated by the Department of Justice for charging him over his handling of classified documents.
Appearing on ABC’s "Good Morning America," Trusty suggested that the Justice Department was abusing the law to hurt the former president while letting President Biden get away with his own documents scandal.
Stephanopoulos became exasperated at the claim, asking the lawyer, "What are you talking about?!" and calling the statement "ridiculous."
ABC's George Stephanopoulos became exasperated during a contentious interview with Trump lawyer Jim Trusty on Friday. (Screenshot/ABC)
The exchange happened Friday morning, less than a day after Trump announced he had been informed of his indictment on federal charges for his alleged mishandling of classified documents. Trump called the charges "election interference" and "part of the greatest witch hunt of all time."
Trusty reiterated those claims, telling Stephanopoulos during the broadcast that Special Counsel Jack Smith "is hell bent on criminalizing something that I really don’t think has a criminal basis under the Presidential Records Act."
The attorney explained the finer details of the indictment, including the date and time of Trump’s arraignment next week, and proclaimed, "It puts a stamp of reality on something that really is unreal, in terms of the weaponization of the Department of Justice."
Stephanopoulos dismissed that notion, saying, "I know you’re going to use that phrase, ‘weaponization of the Department of Justice,’ but it’s not just the Presidential Records Act, it’s reportedly the Espionage Act, much more seriously perhaps, obstruction of justice, false statements. Those are common crimes."
Former President Donald Trump speaks at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, on April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Trusty followed up by suggesting that the indictment came down because of pressure from the Biden administration, which he called a "corrupt and politicized source" in this case, "weaponizing something that by statute is not a criminal offense."
Later in the interview, things got testy when the anchor asked if the lawyer believes that "no person is above the law," namely Trump.
Trusty turned the point on Stephanopoulos by citing Biden's document scandal, saying, "No person is below the law. That’s really the issue here. I mean, you’ve got these investigations in Delaware that are a thousand times more serious by a sitting president who has authorized his DOJ to try to sink the candidacy of his prime opposition while that guy has unsecured documents that he stole out of a SCIF [sensitive compartmented information facility] dozens of years ago."
Trusty’s remark upset the anchor, who interjected, "What are you talking about, sir?! What are you talking about?"
"That is a ridiculous statement," he added emphatically, scolding the lawyer.
Taken aback, Trusty responded with laughter, and told the anchor, "Nice try."
He then continued arguing that Biden’s situation is worse than Trump’s despite the disparate legal responses. Trusty ultimately alleged, "You have the ultimate unclean hands of a current sitting president who had no declassification, had none of the protections of President Trump. And who literally had to have stolen stuff from a SCIF."
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Stephanopoulos ended the interview, claiming, "We will see how it plays out, because I don’t think you have the evidence to back up any of the charges you just made, Mr. Trusty, thank you very much."
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