MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell sharply criticized Vice President JD Vance on Thursday, comparing him to former Vice President Gerald Ford over what he characterized as Vance’s silence regarding newly released Jeffrey Epstein emails that reference President Donald Trump.

On his program “The Last Word” on November 13, O’Donnell drew a pointed parallel between Vance’s current posture and Ford’s behavior during the Watergate scandal. O’Donnell compared JD Vance’s current silence to that of Ford during the final days of the Nixon presidency, noting that, just as Ford remained quiet when Nixon was in deep political trouble, Vance has chosen not to speak out. According to O’Donnell, “Tonight, JD Vance is Gerald Ford.”

The remarks followed the House Oversight Committee’s release of Epstein emails on Wednesday. Among the documents, one email showed Epstein calling Trump “evil beyond belief.” The committee’s release sparked renewed questions about Trump’s past association with the convicted sex offender.

In a 2011 email, Epstein informed his associate Ghislaine Maxwell that Trump had spent several hours at his residence with a woman alleged to be a victim of sex trafficking. The release of these newly disclosed documents has reignited questions about Trump’s past association with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal charges.

Vance responded to O’Donnell’s criticism on Thursday, posting on X that he had conducted two media interviews that day. He said that one was airing in a few hours and shared O’Donnell’s 18-minute statement.

One of those interviews was with Fox News host Sean Hannity. O’Donnell addressed Vance’s social media response during Thursday’s broadcast, stating that the vice president never said the word Epstein and never said the words Ghislaine Maxwell during his Fox News appearance. He emphasized that Vance stayed absolutely silent about what he termed the worst challenge Trump is facing.

The MSNBC host also criticized Trump’s own silence on the matter. He noted that Trump, whom he described as the most talkative president in history, spent the day in silence about the story.

O’Donnell emphasized that in one email, Epstein called Trump “evil beyond belief.” Other messages said that “I know how dirty Donald is,” and that Trump “knew about the girls.”

In a follow-up post on X Thursday night, O’Donnell directly addressed Vance’s claim about conducting interviews, writing: “Not a single question or answer about Epstein. Your silence continues. You are Gerald Ford tonight.”

The exchange highlighted the ongoing scrutiny of Trump’s former relationship with Epstein and the political calculations being made by those in his administration as the House Oversight Committee continues releasing documents from Epstein’s estate.

O’Donnell noted that during Hannity’s Thursday program, he spoke with Attorney General Pam Bondi but made no reference to Epstein.

The MSNBC host acknowledged that people who follow Vance on social media likely don’t hear his perspective very often.

O’Donnell remarked that JD Vance inadvertently connected his supporters to what the host had said the previous night about Vance, Donald Trump, and remarks from Jeffrey Epstein’s emails. He suggested that this might be the only way Vance’s followers ever encounter that information—possibly through a video clip of O’Donnell discussing it—since they may have no other source for it.

“In the last 24 hours, Jeffrey Epstein has had more to say about Donald Trump than Donald Trump has had to say about Jeffrey Epstein. And Jeffrey Epstein is dead. Donald Trump has fallen into dead silence,” O’Donnell said.