Nancy Mace freaks out at George Stephanopoulos over Trump rape case

Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina was unable to defend Donald Trump on Sunday amid a civil ruling finding him guilty of sexual assault, but instead attempted to turn the tables on George Stephanopoulos in an explosive on-air exchange.

Stephanopoulos addressed Trump’s legal problems with Mace This week, She asked how she could support the former president, whom a jury had found guilty of raping writer E. Jean Carroll. Mace, herself a victim of sexual harassment, refused to even engage with the question, instead accusing the ABC anchor of trying to “pillory” a rape victim.

“I will tell you that I was raped at the age of 16, and any rape victim will tell you that I lived with incredible shame for 30 years,” Mace said. “I didn’t come forward because I felt that condemnation and shame, and it’s a shame that you will never feel, George, and I’m not going to sit here on your show and have a question asked to embarrass me about another potential rape victim. I’m not going to do that.”

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Stephanopoulos defended his question, pointing out in turn that Mace supported a candidate who was convicted of both sexual abuse and defamation of his victim. Throughout the interview, Mace accused the ABC host of “shaming” her and insisted that the numerous convictions against Trump did not matter because they were not made in criminal court.

“I find it offensive,” Mace added. “As a woman, I find it offensive. I supported the man I believe is best for our country. It’s not Joe Biden, and you looked at the competing rallies in Georgia yesterday. Laken Riley’s family was behind Donald Trump. They were not behind Joe Biden, the same man who apologized for calling her killer an illegal, who was an illegal. And here you are trying to pillory a rape victim.”

That didn’t necessarily fit with Mace’s previous opposition to the former president. Stephanopoulos mentioned Mace’s comments after the Jan. 6 Capitol attack in which she said Trump should not be allowed back in office and must be held accountable for the insurrection. Mace said voters held Trump accountable during the Republican primaries and put the events of Jan. 6 behind them.

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“You have made it clear that you agree that Donald Trump should be found guilty of rape and January 6,” Stephanopoulos noted succinctly.

As the conversation grew increasingly hostile, Mace again raised the “shame” accusation, accusing Stephanopoulos of “shaming women who have been raped.” She added, “Good luck with that,” before Stephanopoulos cut the interview short.

However, Mace attempted to have the last word on social media, attacking the ABC News star in an X-post for his questions, while still not answering the original question about why she would support someone found guilty of sexual abuse.

“I was invited to speak about 2024… instead, Clinton’s sidekick became a fake journalist @Gstephanopoulos attacked me and tried to expose me as a rape victim,” she wrote. “Disgusting.”

Carroll later added her thoughts on the exchange in a post on X. Instead of taking sides, she thanked Stephanopoulos and sent only good feelings to Mace.

“Thank you, @GStephanopoulos, for bravely defending me. I wish Rep. @RepNancyMace the best. And I pay tribute to all survivors for their strength, resilience and intellect,” she wrote.

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