WATCH: Vance Doesn’t Fall for NYT Reporter’s Trap, Instead Turns Question Around and Roasts Kamala’s “Love of Censorship”
During a recent trip to the southern border, JD Vance tactfully maneuvered a baiting question from a New York Times reporter who asked Vance about Tucker Carlson having a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention. Liberals have lashed out against Carlson over contrarian takes made on his podcast in recent interviews.
When the reporter asked Vance about Carlson, the reporter cited claims the Ohio Senator had made about “pushing back on bad ideas.” Therefore, Vance was asked if Carlson was a “distraction” that would negatively impact the campaign leading up to the election. However, Vance maintained that Carlson was not affiliated with the campaign and would not seek to limit freedom of speech.
“You mentioned that, you know, we should push back on bad ideas and freedom of speech. Tucker Carlson had a speaking slot at the RNC. He’s a very influential figure among conservatives. I mean, do you think that he should be interviewing those kind of people you know months before the election? Is that a distraction? Is that, you know, causing problems for your campaign?” the reporter asked.
Vance replied, “Well, look, Tucker Carlson isn’t affiliated with the campaign, so I don’t think of what Tucker Carlson does is a distraction or is not. He’s going to do what he wants to do, and we can disagree or agree with the viewpoints offered by his host. But again, I think the fundamental idea here is Republicans believe not in censorship.”
Maintaining his commitment to freedom of speech, Vance continued, “We believe in free speech and debate. It’s one of the most important things that RFK said in his message endorsing Donald Trump, is the Democrats used to be the party where if you had an idea you didn’t like you push back against it, you fought back against it, you criticized it. This whole idea that has taken hold in the far left of this country, that if you see a bad idea, the way to solve it is to censor it.”
Vance then turned the discussion on Vice President Kamala Harris, labeling her as a proponent of censorship. “I think it’s ridiculous. Kamala Harris is the candidate of censorship. She’s the candidate of using big tech to silence Americans. She’s the candidate of shutting Americans up. Donald Trump is the candidate of letting us have a debate, because he believes in the American people enough to know that if we have a real debate, wisdom is ultimately going to win out. That’s the Donald Trump approach. It’s anti censorship, and I’m proud to stand with him on it.”
Earlier in the interview, Vance highlighted the negative impacts of the Biden-Harris administration’s border policies while offering policy suggestions that would help mitigate the dire border crisis that has unfolded over the past several years. Watch the Vance navigate the question from the reporter with professionalism and confidence:
“Now there are a few things, of course, on top of that, a few policy changes, some executive orders I talked about with Manny earlier about this. Number one, reimplement title 42 the remain in Mexico policy. It really worked. Number two, reimplement deportations. You’ve got to be willing to send people back who come across that border illegally. And number three in the asylum fraud, the basic problem, or one of the most fundamental problems, I should say, with our immigration system, is Kamala Harris lets people come into this country claim asylum and then disappear for 10 or 12 years awaiting a court date. You’ve got to say, wait in Mexico while we adjudicate your asylum claim. You don’t get to come into this country collect free health care benefits and free housing on American taxpayers dime, which is what they’re doing thanks to Kamala Harris’s policies.”
Note: The featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.
