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OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
11:52 AM – Monday, October 13, 2025
ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos abruptly cut short a live interview with Vice President JD Vance on Sunday after the two clashed over unproven allegations surrounding Trump Border Czar Tom Homan allegedly accepting a “bribe” during a 2024 FBI sting operation.
The confrontation unfolded on “This Week,” ABC’s flagship political program, when Stephanopoulos pressed Vance to answer whether Homan had ever accepted or returned $50,000 in cash that undercover FBI agents under the Biden administration allegedly gave him last year while posing as businessmen seeking influence in a prospective second Trump administration.
Vance quickly dismissed the claim as a “ridiculous smear,” insisting there was “no evidence whatsoever” that Homan had done anything improper or illegal.
“This is a fake scandal cooked up by the media,” Vance said, accusing Stephanopoulos of ignoring “real issues” like the ongoing government funding standoff and the Middle East peace agreement brokered by President Trump — which led to the last 20 surviving hostages being returned to the Jewish State on Monday.
Stephanopoulos repeatedly attempted to steer the conversation back to the question of whether Homan took or returned the money.
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“It’s a simple question,” the left-wing anchor asserted. “Did he accept the cash?”
As Vance appeared to break down the narrative’s falsehoods little by little, Stephanopoulos suddenly appeared to lose his patience, ending the exchange abruptly. He also accused Stephanopoulos of focusing on sensationalism rather than truth.
“Thank you for your time this morning,” Stephanopoulos chimed in, before cutting to commercial — leaving the U.S. vice president mid-sentence.
The abrupt ending quickly went viral on social media, with clips of the exchange circulating widely and sparking debate over journalistic conduct and political accountability. Supporters of Stephanopoulos praised him for holding a top official’s “feet to the fire,” while critics on the left and right accused the Democrat veteran anchor of grandstanding and silencing the GOP vice president in an attempt to assert dominance.
The Homan Allegations
The exchange stems from reports that Tom Homan — a former acting ICE director and now the Trump administration’s current border czar — was allegedly the target of a prior 2024 FBI sting operation. According to the allegations, undercover agents allegedly handed Homan $50,000 in cash during a meeting in September last year to secure “favorable treatment” in future border security contracts.
The Department of Justice later closed the case, concluding that there was insufficient evidence that Homan had agreed to perform any official acts in exchange for the money. Homan has denied all wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crime.
Since the alleged incident occurred before Homan formally joined the Trump administration, prosecutors who reached out to the press argued that proving a corrupt quid pro quo under federal bribery statutes would be very difficult.
Following the broadcast, Vance took to social media to criticize ABC News and Stephanopoulos directly.
“While the world faces crises, the corporate media is obsessed with fake scandals,” he wrote on X. “This is why Americans don’t trust them.”
The White House also echoed that sentiment, calling the segment “an ambush interview built on false premises.”
ABC News declined to comment on the viral moment but issued a vague statement reaffirming the left-leaning network’s commitment to “pressing public officials on matters of accountability.”
The clash adds to a series of tense on-air moments between Stephanopoulos and Trump-aligned officials in recent years.
The existence and authenticity of the alleged FBI recording of Homan has not been independently verified, and the Justice Department’s decision to close the case appears to indicate no wrongdoing by Homan and that no evidence was found credible or sufficient to warrant prosecution.
In a statement to ABC News, FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said that the allegations were “subjected to a full review by FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors. They found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing.”
“The Department’s resources must remain focused on real threats to the American people, not baseless investigations. As a result, the investigation has been closed,” Patel and Blanche added.
In March last year, Trump sued ABC News and Stephanopoulos after the anchor falsely claimed during a broadcast that Trump had been “found liable for rape” in a civil case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll. ABC and Stephanopoulos agreed to settle the lawsuit, and as part of the settlement, the left-wing network paid $15 million to Trump’s presidential library foundation and $1 million in legal fees.
Additionally, ABC issued a public apology and posted an editor’s note expressing regret over the false statements made during the interview.
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