All posts tagged "jd vance"

'Naked opportunist': Vance dressed down as he sets the stage for 'someone even worse'

MAGA has started to turn on Vice President JD Vance, and in doing so, it's left room for his rivals and complicated his status among his conservative base, a columnist argued on Wednesday.

The Guardian's Arwa Mahdawi discussed how Vance has been eating sauerkraut and losing weight under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s recommendations, but he can't seem to keep his MAGA coalition happy. Kennedy recently commented on Vance's weight loss, claiming he lost 20 pounds in 20 days.

" JD Vance is also on the diet, and you can see how different he looks," Kennedy said.

"Dunno about that: still looks like a naked opportunist to me," Mahdawi wrote.

Amid reports that Vance's security detail has accommodated frequent or last-minute helicopter trips for his family, Vance's standing among Republicans has also come into question, according to The Washington Post.

"Vance’s allies told the Post that the attacks, which seem largely driven by his mild criticism of Israel and the Iran war, are a 'coordinated' attempt to poison his 2028 presidential chances," Mahdawi wrote.

Angering the GOP could create a path for Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the 2028 presidential race, she added.

"I can’t say it’s not fun to watch MAGA infighting," Mahdawi quipped. "Nevertheless, it’s hard to take too much satisfaction from Vance’s troubles considering they only really benefit his rival for the 2028 Republican nomination: the odious war hawk Marco Rubio, who is now narrowing the gap with Vance in the polls. A setback for one awful politician always seems to spell a career boost for someone even worse. It’s really quite the pickle."

CBS 'joke' hire thinks he witnessed a miracle at a bar with JD Vance: reports

No, the miracle is not that anyone wanted to go to a bar with Vice President J.D. Vance.

Ross Douthat, already dubbed a "joke" by his new colleagues at "60 Minutes," recently revealed a spiritual experience he believes he shared with Vance at a bar in 2019, The Daily Beast reported on Wednesday.

Douthat, brought on to the CBS show despite lacking any television news production or reporting experience, apparently was drinking with Vance when the "divine intervention occurred," according to the report.

Douthat confirmed the experience — which Vance previously wrote about without naming Douthat — during a June episode of his podcast, "Interesting Times," according to the Beast.

The pair were discussing their shared Catholic faith when the "mysterious" event occurred, Douthat said.

Vance says he started the conversation by sharing his view that American Catholics treat the pope as a political figure to be criticized or praised — and should not.

When Douthat responded — agreeing some Catholics "went too far" — something unexpected happened, Vance said.

"Suddenly a wine glass seemed to leap from a stable place behind the bar and crashed on the floor in front of us," said Vance.

The pair "stared at each other in silence for a bit, a little startled by what we’d just seen," Vance later reported.

They abruptly ended the conversation after that.

"There was a mysterious leap of a glass," Douthat later said.

JD Vance's 'extremely self-conscious' worries 'grated' on White House staff: report

White House staff described how difficult Vice President JD Vance can be when worrying about his image, MS NOW reported Friday.

Vance's obsession with his self-image hasn't gone over smoothly with White House staff, especially amid a rumored contest with Secretary of State Marco Rubio to win Trump's favor in becoming his successor, according to MS NOW.

"Team Vance is extremely self-conscious about what people are saying about him — both here and just randos online — almost to a fault," a White House official told MS NOW.

A White House official also told MS NOW that Vance and his team "grated" on senior staff because of his near-obsessive focus on online chatter about him. Vance apparently has a "near-obsessive" focus on his public image in the context of his recent book tour and "sauerkraut-heavy" diet, the insider said.

However, Trump has been friendlier and more complimentary to Vance in recent weeks, according to MS NOW, which reported that "Trump's informal audition for his 2028 successor appears to be over," with Vance the winner.

"It's become, 'JD's our guy, we gotta help JD,'" a senior administration official told MS NOW, saying that Trump has become warmer towards Vance ever since he launched his book tour.

Trump has even been complimenting Vance's weight loss and remarking that he's been looking good lately, according to MS NOW.

Olivia Wales, a spokesperson for the White House, told MS NOW in an email that Vance has become Trump's "right-hand man" and an "invaluable member" of his national security team.

'He gives me the willies': JD Vance's 2028 hopes brutalized by Trump voters

President Donald Trump's voters might not feel the same about Vice President JD Vance as they do about the commander-in-chief, two analysts revealed on Friday.

The Bulwark's publisher Sarah Longwell and managing editor Sam Stein shared in a Substack video how Trump supporters in a recent focus group said they don't have the same interest in Vance as they do the president.

"We were doing a group last week of Biden to Trump voters, and we were asking about Vance and their responses were straight," Longwell said.

Voters couldn't exactly name what it was — "but I just really don't like him," was the common sentiment, Stein explained.

"There's one woman in the group, she's like, 'I really don't like Kamala Harris, but I don't know, if it was Vance and Kamala, I'm probably voting for Kamala,'" Longwell said. "It was a whole, 'Yeah, I just don't like him. He just gives me the willies.'"

Stein said it could come down to personality.

"There's not much charisma there, to be honest. And it does feel like occasionally, or often, he's trying too hard to have charisma," Stein said.

Stein suggested there must have been something that voters were drawn to about him to elect him vice president. But Longwell offered a reminder of what happened in the months before Vance joined Trump's campaign.

"What happened is he was running in Ohio, he was running third, and then Trump endorsed him because they put together a thing that said if Trump endorses him, we can lift him into first place, which was true," she said.

Trump endorsed Vance, and that changed everything, Longwell argued. "He became a Trump loyalist willing to do anything to support Trump. He became friends with Don Jr. and Eric — and they convinced Trump to pick him."

Longwell predicted it would either be Vance or Secretary of State Marco Rubio heading into the 2028 presidential election.

"Whoever it's going to be is the one Trump — if Trump's still alive — likely picks as his successor," Longwell said.

She suggested that a Vance or Rubio ticket could give Democrats a path to victory.

"I think that they are eminently beatable and that they can't hold the America First, MAGA establishment together," Longwell said. "And that leaning into that fracture and the fact that a bunch of people who were Trump-only voters now start — go back and recede — Democrats have a chance."

Trump Voters Say JD Vance Gives Them the Willies by The Bulwark

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JD Vance let slip his secret envy with 'self-admission' to Joe Rogan: analysts

Vice President JD Vance's interview with Joe Rogan revealed several insights, including the notion that he could be longing for the cool factor — and jealous that his own party might not have it, two political insiders explained on Friday.

The Bulwark's publisher Sarah Longwell and managing editor Sam Stein discussed in a Substack video how Vance could have alluded to this feeling when he sat down with Rogan earlier this week — and what motivated the sit-down.

"He thinks this is how this kind of Joe Rogan type audience and his ability to hang is the key to his electoral future," Longwell said. "But there were some notable things that came out of it. One of them was Vance saying that Republicans are still kind of embarrassing, like they're not cool."

Longwell suggested that Vance could be signaling, "Well, I'm cool, but the rest of the party's not that cool."

Stein suggested it was "self-admission" from Vance, who could be thinking, "'Oh man, these people who hang out with Hollywood actors and sports stars and they're doing fun stuff, hanging in cities and going to breweries. I kind of want that. But I can't say it, but I kind of want that.' That's how I viewed it."

Stein described why that might be on Vance's mind, especially after experiencing the popularity around his book and the film based on it: "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis."

"Because he got a taste of that," Stein said. "He was in Silicon Valley for a little while, so he was hanging out. And he had the Netflix movie made on his life and his book and all that stuff. So I think he knows, it's kind of fun, honestly, and it is cool. And I think he's a little jealous or envious."

That, compared to Republican-aligned performers and the GOP's cultural reach, is a sharp contrast, Longwell added.

"I think it's tough when at some point your only cultural cachet is Kid Rock and Vanilla Ice or whatever. And even the remaining member of Milli Vanilli won't come play your concerts anymore."

Trump Voters Say JD Vance Gives Them the Willies by The Bulwark

Read on Substack

Lawmaker vows to see Todd Blanche in jail after 'beyond shameful' revelations: 'A monster'

A Democratic lawmaker had sharp words for Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and the Trump administration on Thursday — and vowed to take legal action.

Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) told MS NOW anchor Alicia Menendez that Blanche, who President Donald Trump nominated as attorney general, needs to face real consequences for his involvement in the Epstein files. She suggested that Vice President J.D. Vance and Blanche should face investigations over their involvement in concealing the files.

"This is the biggest coverup in American history," she said. "The White House's coverup of the Epstein files is so beyond shameful and there are so many people who need to be investigated and ultimately prosecuted for it. Let's not forget that J.D. Vance held a meeting in the White House Situation Room — this is a room where, historically, presidents convene national security experts to talk about matters of war and combatting terrorism."

Ansari described feeling in awe of Jeffrey Epstein's survivors and their courage following testimony from Dani Bensky. Bensky discussed how Blanche had not met with Epstein's victims or their representatives.

"Their lives have been upended because of Todd Blanche," she said. "I don't trust Todd Blanche at all. He is Donald Trump's attorney. He technically is his former personal defense attorney. But yesterday, as we heard in the confirmation hearing, he still called himself Donald Trump's lawyer. And they will do everything that they can to cover this up."

Blanche has been under oath in Congress, facing heated questions from lawmakers this week.

"We know that Todd Blanche met with Ghislaine Maxwell for nine hours," she said. "Dani laid this out very clearly in her testimony. He has not met with survivors. I would think that when Republican senators, at least one has made clear that he does need to do so. He may go through the motions. But Todd Blanche cannot be trusted. He was the one who was managing this entire situation. He is the one who has refused to release the entirety of the Epstein files. He is the one who has doxed survivors and upended their entire lives by releasing their personal information, unveiling information about Jane Doe's who now have to deal with the consequences of all of this when they didn't choose to.

"He's a monster. And Todd Blanche should go to jail — he belongs in jail. He should absolutely not be confirmed as the attorney general of the United States of America."

Vance quietly 'stabbing the president in the back' over Epstein fallout: analyst

An analyst on Thursday revealed why Vice President JD Vance's comments on the Epstein files threw President Donald Trump and his administration under the bus.

Journalist Chuck Todd told CNN that Vance's stunning admission during his interview Wednesday with Joe Rogan uncovers more about Vance — who has called himself an "OG conspiracy theorist" — and how he plans to position himself politically among fellow conservatives and the MAGA movement.

"I think that tells you a little bit more about Vance's own politics, right?" Todd said.

"He wants to stay in the good graces of that part of the information ecosystem that has been ... a portion of MAGA where Epstein and that scandal has been an important rallying cry, if you will," Todd added. "And it shows you, I think, Vance wants to be one of them."

Vance made a quiet confession to Rogan when he described the DOJ's release of the highly anticipated materials as a communications problem.

"So, in a weird way, he was pushing distance because the comms problem was the president, right?" Todd said. "It was the comms issue that he talks about: the president slow-walking the legislation, trying to stop it from being passed in the House, trying to stop it from being passed in the Senate, then finally stopping it from being released, trying to do that crazy deal with Ghislaine Maxwell. So in his own way, he was stabbing the president in the back with those comments."

Sparks fly as GOP's top investigator breaks with Trump over Epstein files

Rep. James Comer (R-KY) admitted Thursday that he agrees with Vice President JD Vance's comments that the Trump administration and Department of Justice's rollout of the Epstein files has "been handled poorly," according to reports.

The House Oversight Committee Chairman, who has been leading the congressional investigation into the handling into the late financier and co-conspirators, told NOTUS that he agrees with Vance, who made the admission during an interview on Joe Rogan's podcast Wednesday.

"I agree with [Vance] 100%," Comer said.

Comer's remarks were considered "a notable escalation of criticism by the House Republican and underscores frustration in the party over the White House’s handling of information around the disgraced financier," NOTUS reported.

"I think 99.9% of Americans would agree with what the vice president said," Comer told NOTUS. "It’s been handled poorly, but a lot of the information has never been shared."

In an unusual break from the Trump administration, Vance told Rogan that the Trump administration had "mishandled the Epstein release."

The significant moment highlighted how the Epstein files have been a point of division among conservatives — both in and outside the White House.

Comer explained that the committee was continuing to pursue the additional DOJ unreleased materials.

"They’ve said they’ve turned over every document they can legally turn over," Comer said. "If you have documents you can’t legally turn over, explain to us why."

JD Vance's 'laughable' excuse for fumbling Epstein files chided by Dem: 'He clearly knew'

A Democratic lawmaker chided the way Vice President JD Vance described the White House's handling of the Epstein files.

While speaking with CNN anchor Erin Burnett, Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) reacted to comments that Vance made while he was on The Joe Rogan Experience earlier this week.

"I say this with all candor. Like, we absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files," Vance told Rogan. "We just did. But do I think the reason we screwed up the comms is that we were trying to hide something? No."

Before Burnett could finish asking whether Vance's claims were believable, Garcia shouted, "That's laughable," as he shook his head.

"That's laughable," Garcia repeated. "The Vice President was holding essentially classified meetings in the Situation Room with the entire top level of the administration, including the AG, the Chief of Staff, the FBI director, trying to actually manage the release of the files."

Garcia was referring to details that emerged from reporting by New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan in their book Regime Change.

Garcia explained that in the meetings, Vance was trying to "basically take the heat off Donald Trump," and dismissed Vance's description of those scenes as simply a communications problem.

"The vice president was in the situation room trying to manage the Epstein files, and he's saying it was a comms problem?" Garcia said. "He clearly knew that this was much bigger than a comms issue, which is why he's trying to have these secret meetings in the situation room."

Garcia added, "We know from reporting that they were trying to use Ghislaine Maxwell as a possible way of exonerating the president. It's outrageous."