Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Politico diplomatic correspondent Felicia Schwartz of “journalistic malpractice” for leaving out on-the-record quotes defending Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in a story critical of his role in Russia peace talks.
The article — “‘His inexperience shines through’: Steve Witkoff struggles to manage Russia as Trump peace envoy” — quoted anonymous sources who faulted Witkoff’s handling of negotiations. But Vance said Schwartz omitted full on-the-record statements from him, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and former White House adviser Jared Kushner, all of whom defended Witkoff.
“This story from Politico is journalistic malpractice. But it’s more than that: it’s a foreign influence operation meant to hurt the administration and one of our most effective members. Notice how all of the people attacking Steve are on background? That means it’s two or three deep staters who are angry that Witkoff has succeeded where they’ve failed,” Vance wrote on X.
“You know what this ‘reporter’ left out to make room for anonymous quotes? The full quote from the sitting vice president, on the record. A quote from the secretary of the state, on the record. A quote from Jared Kushner, on the record.”
https://twitter.com/jdvance/status/1961416107924787497
The article quoted only a portion of Vance’s remarks: “Witkoff has made more progress towards ending the bloodshed in Ukraine than all his critics combined.” In his full statement, Vance called Witkoff an “invaluable member” of the administration who would be credited with a potential Russia-Ukraine peace agreement.
Vance also faulted Politico for trimming comments from U.K. national security adviser Jonathan Powell. The article quoted Powell as saying Witkoff “has been able to open doors that no one else could” and “is exactly [the] sort of person” who can get results.
Powell’s full statement read: “I have been working on peace negotiations for the last thirty years and there is a lot of snobbery in diplomacy – that peace can only be made in grand chandeliered rooms, with a delegation of tens of officials and decades of diplomatic experience. But in my experience the people who are actually successful at making peace operate on their own and concentrate on building trust between key leaders on either side and moving quietly to cut a deal. Steve Witkoff is exactly that sort of person.”
Thank you for visiting