JD Vance once coined Trump “America’s Hitler," now he will serve as his second in command
Trump names J.D. Vance as VP pick
Senator J.D. Vance is Donald Trump's pick for potential vice president, Trump revealed on his Truth Social account Monday. The former president and presumed Republican candidate chose Ohio's junior senator to be his running mate as Trump attempts to snag a second term as president of the United States.
WASHINGTON - JD Vance was a self-described "Never Trumper" just eight years ago. Now, he will serve as his vice president if Trump secures the office this November.
"I’m a Never Trump guy," Vance said in an interview with Charlie Rose in 2016. "I never liked him."
The Ohio native harshly denounced Trump on Twitter during his 2016 campaign, calling him a "moral disaster" and "just another opioid" for Middle America.
Vance also liked tweets that said Trump committed "serial sexual assault," called him "one of the USA’s most hated, villainous, duchy celebs," and harshly criticized Trump’s response to the 2017 White nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
JD Vance will be Donald Trump's running mate in 2024
JD Vance, a one-time "Never Trumper," has since endorsed the former president. Now he's Donald Trump's pick as running mate and potential vice president.
Trump’s vice presidential announcement on Monday marks a dramatic reversal on Vance’s part.
The "Hillbilly Elegy" author was launched into the political spotlight due to his ability to explain Trump’s appeal to the white working class.
The 39-year-old’s memoir, published the year Trump was elected, covered the childhood years he spent in Jackson, Kentucky, raised by his "Mamaw" and "Papaw" as his mother battled drug addiction.
In a 2016 interview about his book, Vance told a reporter that although his background would have made him a natural Trump supporter, "I’m definitely not gonna vote for Trump because I think that he’s projecting very complex problems onto simple villains. He is the most raw expression of a massive finger pointed at other people."
Since aligning himself with Trump, Vance too has begun to point a finger at outside sources such as offshoring and immigration.
Vance wrote privately on Facebook in 2016 to his former law school roommate, Josh McLaurin, that he "goes back and forth between thinking Trump is a cynical asshole like Nixon who wouldn’t be that bad (and might even prove useful) or that he’s America’s Hitler."
"To go from those texts…to being Trump’s biggest cheerleader, it’s just kind of unbelievable," McLaurin told BBC Newshour.
If Donald Trump clinches victory in November, his outspoken critic will be his second in command.
Vance recast himself as one of Trump’s staunchest MAGA allies over 18 months in the Senate after winning a 2022 race for an open seat in Ohio. He demonstrated the utmost loyalty to the former president and downplayed the events of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Trump’s vice presidential selection could be a turn-off for some voters regarding his position on abortion, foreign affairs, and immigration.
As a Senator, Vance was known for his "America First" skepticism of the U.S. involvement in global affairs such as the war in Ukraine. Republicans who favor robust U.S. involvement concerning shaping world affairs may take a hit if Vance ascends to the role of vice president.
Vance has been a leading opponent of U.S. aid to Ukraine and argues that defense against China should be prioritized.
"I don’t really care what happens to Ukraine one way or another," Vance said earlier this year in an interview on Steve Bannon’s War Room podcast.
Conservative female voters may be deterred by Vance’s harsh abortion views. He has articulated harder-line policies than Donald Trump, who argues that abortion policies should be up to the states. Vance strongly opposes the practice and could even support a national ban.
Vance will reiterate Trump’s arguments for "broad-based tariffs," which will promise a 10% across-the-board tariff on all foreign imports, disregarding economists’ concern about fueling inflation. He will also back up the former president in advocating for the border wall and opposing amnesty for illegal immigrants.
Trump’s selection of JD Vance strikes up a stark contrast with his former vice president, Mike Pence, who tore into Trump for being unfaithful to the U.S. Constitution and for his prominent role in the January 6th attack.
"Vance is an echo to Trump," said David Niven, the associate professor of politics at the University of Cincinnati. "He’s not a new voice."