JD Vance implies vice presidential choices are inconsequential
Trump's running mate has come up with a fresh reply to address his turbulent beginning on the campaign trail.
TroibNews 
JD Vance has been experimenting with various tactics in response to the increased scrutiny he's received since becoming Donald Trump’s running mate. Lately, he's been minimizing his significance in the election altogether.
“My attitude is, it doesn't really matter, as much as this hits my ego,” Vance commented during an interview on the “FULL SEND PODCAST” released on Friday. “People are going to vote primarily for Donald Trump or for Kamala Harris. That's the way these things go. I think my job over the next few months is to just drive home the message that Kamala Harris has been a bad vice president, and she’d be a worse president.”
Vance’s candid acknowledgment of the vice presidential nominee's role — in response to a question about assessing potential contenders for Harris’ running mate — represents one of the campaign’s most straightforward efforts to divert negative attention from himself. Since joining Trump’s ticket, he has faced backlash for various past remarks, including calling some Democrats “childless cat ladies,” suggesting that parents with biological children should have more political power, and referring to pregnancies from rape and incest as “inconvenient.”
Switching to the offensive, Vance underscored a common yet often understated political reality: the vice president's role is largely symbolic. His comments were in line with Trump’s sentiments earlier this week at the National Association of Black Journalists conference in Chicago, where Trump aimed to redirect the focus back to the Harris campaign despite the GOP’s lack of a unified attack strategy.
“Historically, the vice president, in terms of the election, does not have any impact,” Trump stated. “I mean, virtually no impact … virtually never has it mattered.”
Trump also skirted a direct answer to Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner's question on whether Vance was prepared to serve as president if the situation arose.
“You’re voting for the president, and you can have a vice president who is outstanding in every way,” he explained. “And I think JD is, I think that all of them would have been, but you’re not voting that way. You’re voting for the president.”
During the podcast interview, Vance remained enthusiastic about critiquing his potential Democratic opponents for the vice presidency, regardless of the position's actual electoral influence.
“There’s a lot of rumors that it’s going to be this guy Tim Walz … He seems really angry,” Vance said of the Minnesota governor being considered as a VP candidate for Harris.
However, it was his comparison of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a rumored front-runner, to former President Barack Obama that sparked a direct response.
“I’ve seen a lot of clips of him talk, and he talks like Barack Obama,” Vance remarked about Shapiro. “It’s like if I tried to do a really bad impression of Barack Obama, that’s what it would sound like.”
Shapiro described the insult as “weird,” pointing to Obama’s widely praised speaking abilities, reflecting a common sentiment within the Democratic Party.
“It is clear that Trump really has buyer’s remorse,” Shapiro told reporters at an event in Pennsylvania on Friday.
Anna Muller contributed to this report for TROIB News
“My attitude is, it doesn't really matter, as much as this hits my ego,” Vance commented during an interview on the “FULL SEND PODCAST” released on Friday. “People are going to vote primarily for Donald Trump or for Kamala Harris. That's the way these things go. I think my job over the next few months is to just drive home the message that Kamala Harris has been a bad vice president, and she’d be a worse president.”
Vance’s candid acknowledgment of the vice presidential nominee's role — in response to a question about assessing potential contenders for Harris’ running mate — represents one of the campaign’s most straightforward efforts to divert negative attention from himself. Since joining Trump’s ticket, he has faced backlash for various past remarks, including calling some Democrats “childless cat ladies,” suggesting that parents with biological children should have more political power, and referring to pregnancies from rape and incest as “inconvenient.”
Switching to the offensive, Vance underscored a common yet often understated political reality: the vice president's role is largely symbolic. His comments were in line with Trump’s sentiments earlier this week at the National Association of Black Journalists conference in Chicago, where Trump aimed to redirect the focus back to the Harris campaign despite the GOP’s lack of a unified attack strategy.
“Historically, the vice president, in terms of the election, does not have any impact,” Trump stated. “I mean, virtually no impact … virtually never has it mattered.”
Trump also skirted a direct answer to Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner's question on whether Vance was prepared to serve as president if the situation arose.
“You’re voting for the president, and you can have a vice president who is outstanding in every way,” he explained. “And I think JD is, I think that all of them would have been, but you’re not voting that way. You’re voting for the president.”
During the podcast interview, Vance remained enthusiastic about critiquing his potential Democratic opponents for the vice presidency, regardless of the position's actual electoral influence.
“There’s a lot of rumors that it’s going to be this guy Tim Walz … He seems really angry,” Vance said of the Minnesota governor being considered as a VP candidate for Harris.
However, it was his comparison of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a rumored front-runner, to former President Barack Obama that sparked a direct response.
“I’ve seen a lot of clips of him talk, and he talks like Barack Obama,” Vance remarked about Shapiro. “It’s like if I tried to do a really bad impression of Barack Obama, that’s what it would sound like.”
Shapiro described the insult as “weird,” pointing to Obama’s widely praised speaking abilities, reflecting a common sentiment within the Democratic Party.
“It is clear that Trump really has buyer’s remorse,” Shapiro told reporters at an event in Pennsylvania on Friday.
Anna Muller contributed to this report for TROIB News
