Kathrine Frich
People were quick to point out the obvious flaw in his big speech.
Politicians love making grand promises about cleaning up public life and locking up financial scammers.
But when those pledges get made on live television, they can quickly backfire if the speaker forgets who is sitting in the corner office.
Big TV promises
Vice President JD Vance went on national television this week with a stern message for financial scammers.
Speaking on Fox News and cited by HuffPost, he insisted that anyone stealing public money belongs behind bars.
“I don’t care where you came from. I don’t care what your name is,” Vance told host Laura Ingraham.
He added that “if you are committing fraud against the American people, all of us, all of us in public leadership should be trying to stop it and try to throw you in prison for enriching yourself off of the American taxpayer.”
Looking close home
Critics were quick to point out the obvious flaw in his big speech. They suggested Vance might want to take a closer look at his own boss, President Donald Trump.
Since returning to office, Trump has granted pardons to dozens of people convicted of money laundering and fraud.
The president also carries an extensive history of financial scandals. In 2024, courts convicted him of falsifying business records, alongside a civil ruling for fraudulent business practices.
Two years earlier, a court found the Trump Organization guilty of tax fraud, according to HuffPost.
Long record of payouts
The president’s legal troubles stretch back even further. In 2019, Trump paid $2 million to eight charities after admitting he misused funds from the Donald J. Trump Foundation.
The year before that, he paid $25 million to settle fraud allegations over Trump University.
New money-making ventures continue to raise eyebrows today. According to The New York Times, Trump made over $1 billion from his crypto investments while hundreds of thousands of individual investors suffered massive losses.
He has even bought shares in firms right before his administration announced decisions that helped those exact companies.
Profiting off the office
Media commentators are taking notice of the relentless financial activity. Last month, The Wall Street Journal editorial board accused Trump and his family of “profiting off the presidency in ways that demean the office.”
Vance promised an aggressive hunt for financial crooks. Yet critics remain skeptical that the vice president will look anywhere near the White House.
Sources: HuffPost, Fox News, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal
