'JD Understands the Game': Vance Adopts Social Media Provocateur Persona
Vance’s strategy for social media may not be groundbreaking, but his position in the presidential line of succession certainly is.
TroibNews 
In the West Wing, there is a politician utilizing social media to shape news cycles, belittle the intellect of critics, express disdain for Democratic rivals, and share content that is sometimes misspelled and often strays from his administration’s message.
This figure is not Donald Trump.
JD Vance, the first millennial vice president who gained national recognition in 2016 through his well-crafted political memoir *Hillbilly Elegy*, has made a name for himself as a provocative social media presence in the early days of the second Trump administration.
His approach to social media mirrors Trump’s during his initial term, signaling a departure from traditional political communication norms. As the vice president and a potential candidate for the 2028 presidential race, Vance’s strategy stands in contrast to his predecessor Mike Pence’s more restrained social media style, which featured sporadic all-caps posts or exclamation points and served as a balancing force to Trump’s brashness. Vance, by contrast, fully embraces the MAGA ethos and its unapologetic appeal.
“The president is a trailblazer when it comes to trolling: He is the greatest of all time at it — but the vice president is in the upper echelon,” remarked Alex Bruesewitz, a prominent MAGA influencer and CEO of X Strategies, a conservative digital marketing firm. He added, “JD gets the game. He's effective at it, and he instinctually gets it.”
As Vance embarks on his first international trip, which will test his diplomatic skills abroad, he is using social media not as a diplomatic tool, but rather as a blunt instrument.
The breadth of Vance’s social media activity encompasses everything from early 2000s pop culture to legal issues. Recently, he has engaged in a public spat with Rep. Ro Khanna regarding the re-hiring of a Department of Government Efficiency employee who had resigned due to racist online comments. He has also suggested that federal judges should not have control over executive power, quoted *Good Will Hunting* to challenge critics of Trump’s tariff policy, pondered the mating habits of a chihuahua-German shepherd mix during the Puppy Bowl, and mused about how the 2006 Rascal Flatts song “Life is a Highway” serves as a divider of the “two genders.” Notably, he also misspelled Trump’s name as “Trunp” and opted against removing the post.
“He is the vice president, but he has continued to be a prolific social media user, in many ways, to his own advantage, and to advance the message of the administration,” stated Matthew Bartlett, a GOP strategist and former official in Trump’s first administration, acknowledging some missteps.
When questioned about Vance’s social media tactics, a spokesperson for the vice president emphasized their role in promoting authenticity and trust. “As the most transparent administration in history, President Trump and Vice President Vance are who they are,” said Taylor Van Kirk, Vance’s press secretary. “They believe the American people should be able to see their leaders in action and make up their own minds without any filter from the biased mainstream media.”
Vance’s social media strategy is not new; he established himself as a MAGA advocate in 2021 before his Senate campaign. However, his position in the presidential line of succession alters the stakes.
He has occasionally crossed lines, evidenced by deleted posts. After the November election, while preparing for the vice presidency, he missed crucial Senate votes and faced backlash from Grace Chong, CFO and COO of Steve Bannon’s “War Room.” Vance responded in a now-deleted post by calling her "a mouth breathing imbecile."
Vance is also a digital native. In 2005, under the blog title “The Ruminations of JD Hamel,” he expressed his thoughts on the film *Garden State*, saying that he couldn’t watch it because New Jersey’s landscape reminded him too much of Ohio. He later emerged as a young blogger on FrumForum, a blog founded by former George W. Bush speechwriter David Frum.
His recent prolific posting on X has elicited both support and criticism. William Wolfe, a Baptist social media influencer and former Trump appointee, humorously remarked that he would one day tell his son stories about Vance's social media prowess: “One of the greatest.” Meanwhile, Ron Filipkowski, editor-in-chief of the anti-Trump site MeidasTouch, quipped that Vance is “getting paid a lot by the government for his job as full-time social media shitposter.”
In a polarized social media landscape, what some view as chaotic, others see as creativity. “He uses it like a normal person and not like a stiff politician,” noted Bruesewitz. “And it's pretty evident that it's him running his account and not some staffer. I don't think that many politicians can say that.”
Aarav Patel contributed to this report for TROIB News
This figure is not Donald Trump.
JD Vance, the first millennial vice president who gained national recognition in 2016 through his well-crafted political memoir *Hillbilly Elegy*, has made a name for himself as a provocative social media presence in the early days of the second Trump administration.
His approach to social media mirrors Trump’s during his initial term, signaling a departure from traditional political communication norms. As the vice president and a potential candidate for the 2028 presidential race, Vance’s strategy stands in contrast to his predecessor Mike Pence’s more restrained social media style, which featured sporadic all-caps posts or exclamation points and served as a balancing force to Trump’s brashness. Vance, by contrast, fully embraces the MAGA ethos and its unapologetic appeal.
“The president is a trailblazer when it comes to trolling: He is the greatest of all time at it — but the vice president is in the upper echelon,” remarked Alex Bruesewitz, a prominent MAGA influencer and CEO of X Strategies, a conservative digital marketing firm. He added, “JD gets the game. He's effective at it, and he instinctually gets it.”
As Vance embarks on his first international trip, which will test his diplomatic skills abroad, he is using social media not as a diplomatic tool, but rather as a blunt instrument.
The breadth of Vance’s social media activity encompasses everything from early 2000s pop culture to legal issues. Recently, he has engaged in a public spat with Rep. Ro Khanna regarding the re-hiring of a Department of Government Efficiency employee who had resigned due to racist online comments. He has also suggested that federal judges should not have control over executive power, quoted *Good Will Hunting* to challenge critics of Trump’s tariff policy, pondered the mating habits of a chihuahua-German shepherd mix during the Puppy Bowl, and mused about how the 2006 Rascal Flatts song “Life is a Highway” serves as a divider of the “two genders.” Notably, he also misspelled Trump’s name as “Trunp” and opted against removing the post.
“He is the vice president, but he has continued to be a prolific social media user, in many ways, to his own advantage, and to advance the message of the administration,” stated Matthew Bartlett, a GOP strategist and former official in Trump’s first administration, acknowledging some missteps.
When questioned about Vance’s social media tactics, a spokesperson for the vice president emphasized their role in promoting authenticity and trust. “As the most transparent administration in history, President Trump and Vice President Vance are who they are,” said Taylor Van Kirk, Vance’s press secretary. “They believe the American people should be able to see their leaders in action and make up their own minds without any filter from the biased mainstream media.”
Vance’s social media strategy is not new; he established himself as a MAGA advocate in 2021 before his Senate campaign. However, his position in the presidential line of succession alters the stakes.
He has occasionally crossed lines, evidenced by deleted posts. After the November election, while preparing for the vice presidency, he missed crucial Senate votes and faced backlash from Grace Chong, CFO and COO of Steve Bannon’s “War Room.” Vance responded in a now-deleted post by calling her "a mouth breathing imbecile."
Vance is also a digital native. In 2005, under the blog title “The Ruminations of JD Hamel,” he expressed his thoughts on the film *Garden State*, saying that he couldn’t watch it because New Jersey’s landscape reminded him too much of Ohio. He later emerged as a young blogger on FrumForum, a blog founded by former George W. Bush speechwriter David Frum.
His recent prolific posting on X has elicited both support and criticism. William Wolfe, a Baptist social media influencer and former Trump appointee, humorously remarked that he would one day tell his son stories about Vance's social media prowess: “One of the greatest.” Meanwhile, Ron Filipkowski, editor-in-chief of the anti-Trump site MeidasTouch, quipped that Vance is “getting paid a lot by the government for his job as full-time social media shitposter.”
In a polarized social media landscape, what some view as chaotic, others see as creativity. “He uses it like a normal person and not like a stiff politician,” noted Bruesewitz. “And it's pretty evident that it's him running his account and not some staffer. I don't think that many politicians can say that.”
Aarav Patel contributed to this report for TROIB News
