Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent destroyed ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos on Sunday, pointing out that Stephanopoulos called Republicans “terrorists” during the 1995 government shutdown.
During an appearance on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos,” Bessent reminded the ABC host about his own experience handling a government shutdown when he served as a senior adviser to former President Bill Clinton.
“The best way to do it… and look, you were involved in a lot of these in the ’90s,” Bessent said. “And, you know, you basically called the Republicans terrorists, and you said that it is not the responsible party that keeps the government closed.”
“I can disagree with you about the history there, but we don’t have time for a history lesson right now,” Stephanopoulos responded.
“No, no, no! George, George, George,” Bessent interrupted. “If you want, I’ve got all your quotes here. I got all your quotes here, George.”
Bessent was referencing a 2000 PBS interview in which Stephanopoulos described the Democratic strategy during the 1995-96 government shutdown under Clinton. At the time, Republicans held the majority in Congress under then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
“Our strategy was very simple. We couldn’t buckle, and we had to say that they 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,” Stephanopoulos said in the PBS interview.
Stephanopoulos served as a senior adviser in the White House administration of Bill Clinton during the 1995-96 shutdowns. He helped craft aggressive messaging which painted congressional Republicans as extremists for forcing a government closure. His hard-line communications strategy at the time helped Clinton shift public blame toward the GOP.
Bessent blasted Stephanopoulos’ past comments to argue that Democrats were using the same position they once condemned Republicans for holding.
“So what we need is five, brave, moderate Democratic senators to cross the aisle,” Bessent continued. “Because right now it is fifty-two to three, five Democrats could cross the aisle and reopen the government. That’s the best way to do it, George.”
Take a look –
In 2001, George Stephanopoulos admitted to PBS Frontline that the Clinton Administration worked to paint Congress as “blackmailing the country to get their way” via government shutdown and characterized them as “basically terrorists.”
In 2025, he calls these quotes “a… pic.twitter.com/UhpWgl2emj
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) November 9, 2025
On Sunday night, eight Senate Democrats finally crossed the aisle to vote with Republicans, advancing legislation that will end the 40-day shutdown.
The breakthrough came after moderate Democrats agreed to proceed without a guaranteed extension of healthcare subsidies for illegal immigrants — the same tactic Stephanopoulos once described as “terrorism” when employed by Republicans.