Stephanopoulos Once Criticized The Tactics He Put To Use In Debate

ABC News' George Stephanopoulos can continue to defend his decision to lead off his debate with an hour's worth of questions that mined the electoral sideshow (Lapel Pins, Tuzla, Weather Underground) for material at the expense of informative questions that cut to the needs of real Americans, but the facts are these: Back when the shoe was on the other foot, and Stephanopoulos' job was that of a campaign insider, he insisted that the media hold itself to a higher standard, as this clip from The War Room demonstrates.

[WATCH.]

STEPHANOPOULOS: What he's going to do in this campaign is focus on what's important to the American people, on the jobs and the education. That's what the American people care about. They want to move into the future. They don't want to be diverted by side issues, and they're not going to let the Republican attack machine divert them