Sen. JD Vance dismisses taking action against Russia for election interference: “That’s what they do”

Sen. JD Vance of Ohio addressed the latest Russian disinformation efforts in the U.S. elections after the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said in a statement Fridaythat Russia is behind a fake video being spread on social media that shows someone tearing up ballots in the key swing state of Pennsylvania.

On “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” the Republican vice presidential nominee would not commit to taking action against Russia to hold it to account for meddling in the presidential election. 

“I think a lot of countries are going to try to manipulate our voters. They’re going to try to manipulate our elections. That’s what they do,” Vance told Brennan. “I think the bigger question is, what is in our best interest vis-à-vis Russia, not what price Russia should pay for putting out social media videos.”

U.S. intelligence has assessed that Russia is trying to undermine the Harris campaign, while Iran is trying to undermine the Trump campaign. In one instance, the ODNI report outlined that a Russian military intelligence unit “sought to recruit a probably unwitting U.S. person to organize protests in the United States.”

Vance criticized the efficacy of sanctions put on Russia by the Biden administration for its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, and argued that American foreign policy shouldn’t be based on whether a country is “spreading videos on social media,” but instead on what’s in the United States’ best interests. 

When asked whether Russia’s manipulation crossed a red line, Vance said he thinks it’s “bad,” but when pressed on whether he’d ask Moscow to “knock it off,” Vance raised doubts that it would have any impact.

“Well of course. I’d call them to knock it off, but this is not a school yard. I call on Moscow to knock it off, are they actually going to do it?” Vance said. “I condemn the Russians for funding fake social media views, but I don’t think that my job as a statesman, as a person who wants to be the next vice president of the United States, is to go engage in saber rattling.”

Vance turned the conversation toward what he said is a top concern for him — for Russia to “stop supporting the Iranians as the Iranians engage in acts of aggression” in the Middle East. On Friday, Israel conducted limited strikes on military sites in Iran, in retaliation for Iran’s Oct. 1 attack, which launched about 180 ballistic missiles at Israel. 

Russian disinformation groups have also orchestrated baseless claims targeting Democratic vice-presidential candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, experts said, and promoted a false report that Vice President Kamala Harris was involved in a 2011 hit-and-run incident.

As for the integrity of the state administered election, the GOP candidate for vice president, who talked with Brennan in Erie, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, expressed confidence.

“I think that they’re doing a good job. I think they’re doing a better job than they were in 2020,” Vance said. “And most importantly, I think most Americans are seeing whether it’s voter ID in places like Wisconsin or Georgia, or a little bit of tightening of the regulations around signature verification in places like Pennsylvania, that I think our elections are in a pretty good spot in 2024.”

He said he only foresees court challenges “if something comes up,” for instance, “of an illegal alien casting a ballot, yeah, we’re going to challenge that in court.” Under federal law, it’s illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections.

On whether he would abide by the Constitution, and assure that his running mate would as well, Vance said “of course,” while noting that he doesn’t worry about Trump on the issue.

“I think that Donald Trump believes in the American Constitution. I know he does. I’ve seen it in his actions. I’ve talked to him about it,” Vance said. “But you asked about me, and personally, yes, my first loyalty is to the American people and to the United States Constitution.”

Margaret Brennan

Margaret Brennan is the moderator of CBS News’ “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.” Based in Washington, D.C., Brennan is also the Network’s chief foreign affairs correspondent and a contributing correspondent to 60 Minutes.