J. D. Vance

[[File:VancePortrait.jpg|Official 2025 inaugural portrait of JD Vance.jpg|thumb|right|165px|Ol' JD himself.]]{{uspolitics}}{{hatnote|Not to be confused with {{wpl|Jack Vance}}, who made up a Vancian Magic system used in many RPGs.}}
{{expand}}
{{cquote|I react viscerally to this idea that I am a member of the [[elite]], even though it’s objectively true.|||J. D. Vance, 2018<ref name="Donnan2018">Shawn Donnan (February 2, 2018). [https://archive.ph/vAhkT "Hillbilly elegist JD Vance: 'The people calling the shots really screwed up'"]. ''The Financial Times''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|To say that Vance’s attempts at bonhomie are wooden is to insult oaks and maples...|||Eugene Robinson<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/07/29/democrats-call-republicans-weird/ No, really, Republicans are getting weirder: The GOP needs to convince voters that Donald Trump and JD Vance are regular guys, and, manifestly, they are not.] by Eugene Robinson (July 29, 2024 at 3:36 p.m. EDT) ''The Washington Post''.</ref>}}
'''
J. P. Mandel
'''<ref>[https://youtube.com/watch?v=v8lURqTH0zs 'JD Mandel:' Former President Trump mixes up name of endorsed Ohio candidate] YouTube</ref> '''James David "J. D." Vance''' {{lived|1984}}, born '''James Donald Bowman''', is a venture capitalist, [[author]], chameleon politician, asshole, make-up artist, couch fucker, and pro-Russia sycophant who is currently the Vice President of the United States. He previously served as a [[United States Senate|Senator]] from [[Fun:Ohio|Ohio]]. He was selected as [[Donald Trump]]'s running mate in the [[2024 U.S. presidential election|2024 Presidential election]], despite his past as a Never Trumper.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Steinhauser |first1=Paul |last2=Gillespie |first2=Brandon |date=July 15, 2024 |title=Trump announces Ohio Sen JD Vance as his 2024 running mate |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-announces-ohio-senator-j-d-vance-his-2024-running-mate |access-date=July 15, 2024 |website=Fox News}}</ref> Later a self-described "[[elite]]", he grew up in [[poverty]], which he escaped in part by serving in the US military working in public affairs.<ref name="Donnan2018"/><ref>Svetlana Shkolnikova (July 16, 2024). [https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2024-07-16/vance-trump-marines-vice-president-republicans-14505177.html "Vance credits service in Marine Corps for teaching him 'how to live like an adult'"]. ''Stars and Stripes''.</ref> He is a [[Catholic]] convert. Vance first entered the national spotlight sometime in 2017 when his memoir ''Hillbilly Elegy'' became a bestseller among centrists and old-fashioned liberals who believed Vance to be some sort of "yahoo whisper".

Vance was ''extremely'' critical of Trump around 2016, but by 2024, he had sucked up to the man and became his VP pick. Vance's current politics can be described as [[neoreactionary]] (although [[Crypto-politics|he'd probably never admit it]]) and he has deep ties with that movement. For example, he opposes [[abortion]] rights and [[gay marriage]]. He is a [[climate change]] denier<ref>[https://www.politico.com/newsletters/power-switch/2024/07/16/vance-changed-his-tune-on-climate-change-oil-cash-flowed-00168695 Vance changed his tune on climate change. Oil cash flowed.] Norman, Nicole. ''Politico'' 16 Aug 2024</ref> and supports [[Ukraine#Russian invasion of Ukraine|Russia's invasion of Ukraine]]. Vance supports intentionally decreasing the value of the [[US dollar]],<ref>Alan Rappeport (July 16, 2024). [https://archive.ph/pGgA5 "Trump-Vance Administration Could Herald New Era for Dollar"]. ''The New York Times''.</ref><ref>Eamonn Sheridan (July 15, 2024). [https://www.forexlive.com/news/trump-running-mate-vance-a-supporter-of-us-dollar-devaluation-make-it-easier-to-export-20240715/ "Trump running mate Vance a supporter of US dollar devaluation - 'make it easier to export'"]. ''Forexlive''.</ref> and is very interested in birth rates among the "[[elitism|ruling classes]]".<ref>https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jul/26/ohio-senate-candidate-jd-vance</ref> He has invoked conspiracy theories about [[George Soros]], an oft [[antisemitic]] insinuation.<ref>[https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/local_news/weinstein-vances-antisemitic-racist-abortion-comment-dangerous/article_76dd8ef6-3b6f-11ed-9a18-bf690fdd895f.html Weinstein: Vance's antisemitic, racist abortion comment 'dangerous'] by Courtney Byrnes (Posted Sep 23, 2022 at 2:55 PM Updated Sep 29, 2022 at 9:43 AM) ''Cleveland Jewish News''.</ref><ref>[https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-soros-conspiracy-9dc8a81d35421388d82be25600db53f8 Republicans invoke Soros to steer narrative on Trump probe] by Ali Swenson (March 22, 2023) ''AP News''.</ref> He has spread disinformation both racist and flagrantly false.<ref>[https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/15/politics/vance-immigrants-pets-springfield-ohio-cnntv/index.html JD Vance defends baseless rumor about Haitian immigrants eating pets] by Kit Maher & Chris Boyette (September 15, 2024) ''CNN''.</ref><ref>[https://apnews.com/article/haitian-immigrants-vance-trump-ohio-6e4a47c52b23ae2c802d216369512ca5 Trump falsely accuses immigrants in Ohio of abducting and eating pets] by Mike Catalini et al. (September 11, 2024) ''Associated Press''.</ref> At the 2024 Republican National Convention, Trump officially nominated Vance as his running mate and he was later elected, the final step in his transformation from Never Trumper to Trump's right hand... at least, when [[Elon Musk|Elon]]'s not in the room.<ref name="FT717"/>

==Life & early career==
"JD" was born in the industrial town of Middletown, [[Ohio]] (which is ''not'' in Appalachia region of the state) to Donald and Beverly "Bev" Bowman. Despite his extended family consisting of many wealthy figures, his parents were of the [[Poverty|less prosperous variety]]. Although impoverished, their house was in a middle-class neighborhood at the time. JD's mother struggled with a severe drug addiction, with his father divorcing her when JD was six and then leaving their life for good. As such, neither of his parents were able to provide him with a steady, conventional upbringing.<ref name="Kennedy2020"/><ref name="RSAU"/><ref>{{cite web |last= Rascouët-Paz |first= Anna|date= July 22, 2024|title=JD Vance Had Middle-Class Upbringing in 4-Bedroom House in Suburban Ohio? |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/jd-vance-middle-class/ |website=Snopes |access-date=November 24, 2025}}</ref>

Subsequently his mother Bev married to Robert Hamel when JD was six. However, JD was mainly raised in the care of his maternal grandparents, whom he called “Papaw” and “Mamaw.” His grandfather (“Papaw”) worked for {{wpl|AK Steel|Armco steel company}} in a union job, and had a “lucrative pension”, as well as owning stock in the said company. They owned a decent suburban house, and provided young JD with things like vacations, golf lessons, and therapy - which point to more financial comfort than being “destitute poor” as he is often mischaracterized as.<ref name="Kennedy2020">{{cite book |last=Kennedy |first=Liam |date=2020 |title=Trump's America: Political Culture and National Identity |url= https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/R6QxEAAAQBAJ |publisher=  Edinburgh University Press|page=254 |isbn=9781474458894}}</ref><ref name="RSAU">{{cite web |last=  Dickinson |first= Tim|date=October 1, 2024 |title= J.D. Vance’s Stolen Valor: ‘He Puts on Poverty Like You Put on Makeup’ |url=https://au.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/jd-vance-hillbilly-elegy-grew-up-poor-trump-67516/ |website= Rolling Stone Australia |access-date=November 24, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last= Davis  |first= Lennard J. |date= August 13, 2024 |title=“Poornography”: Expert says JD Vance a classic example of the rich trying to speak for the poor |url= https://www.salon.com/2024/08/13/poornography-expert-says-jd-vance-a-classic-example-of-the-rich-trying-to-speak-for-the-poor_partner/|website= Salon|access-date=November 24, 2025}}</ref>

Raised [[evangelical]], he converted to Catholicism in 2019. He served in the military. There, he saw no "real fighting" according to himself, but worked in public affairs, e.g. touring bases and photographing troops. After graduating from Yale University (given much financial aid<ref>J. D. Vance (June 29, 2016). [https://www.huffpost.com/entry/yale-law-school-inequality_b_5772a27ee4b0dbb1bbbc11b9 "As A Poor Kid From The Rust Belt, Yale Law School Brought Me Face-to-face With Radical Inequality"]. ''HuffPost''.</ref>) with a Juris Doctor degree in 2016, he worked for [[Peter Thiel]]{{efn|Peter Thiel co-founded PayPal, and later founded the CIA-backed {{w|Palantir Technologies||,}} a data analytics and surveillance company.<ref>Matthew Goldstein and Ryan Mac (May 18, 2023). [https://web.archive.org/web/20231020094007/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/18/business/jeffrey-epstein-peter-thiel.html "Peter Thiel Is Latest Billionaire Said to Have Met With Jeffrey Epstein"]. ''The New York Times''.</ref>}} as a "vulture capitalist" at Thiel's Mithril Capital Management from 2016–2017.<ref>[https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/trump-vp-pick-vance-19574814.php J.D. Vance’s journey from San Francisco ‘Never Trumper’ to VP pick] by Joe Garofoli & Shira Stein (July 15, 2024) ''San Francisco Chronicle''.</ref> Beginning in December 2017, he oversaw the Rise of the Rest Seed Fund with former AOL CEO Steve Case, receiving funding from big-name investors like [[Jeff Bezos]], Ray Dalio, the [[Koch Industries|Kochs]], and the [[Walmart|Waltons]].<ref>Richard Feloni (February 6, 2018). [https://www.businessinsider.com/rise-of-the-rest-steve-case-jd-vance-2018-1?op=1 "High-profile investors like Jeff Bezos, Ray Dalio, and Meg Whitman are flocking to a $150 million fund nurturing startups in overlooked American cities"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref> In 2020, Vance co-founded Narya Capital, which received heavy funding from Eric Schmidt, Marc Andreessen, and Peter Thiel.<ref name="FT717"/> Peter Thiel boosted Vance's 2021–2022 Senate campaign with lots of [[money]],<ref name="FT717">Tabby Kinder, George Hammond, and Alex Rogers (July 17, 2024). [https://archive.ph/1oVs2 "How Peter Thiel and Silicon Valley funded the sudden rise of JD Vance"]. ''The Financial Times''.</ref><ref>Caleb Ecarma (August 30, 2021). [https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/08/jd-vance-rust-belt-reality-check "J.D. Vance’s Rust Belt Rhetoric Gets a Reality Check"]. ''Vanity Fair''.</ref> via a [[super PAC]].<ref name="PoliticoPAC"/> Said super PAC published "vulnerability analyses" about their candidate,<ref name="PoliticoPAC"/> which they graciously deleted after reporters discovered them.<ref>[https://archive.ph/XrlE0 "This item was deleted"]. Dropbox. This URL is linked to from the Politico article about the analyses. Other files in the folder still exist.</ref>

===''Hillbilly Elegy''===
{{cquote|He seemed almost embarrassed by his sudden [[celebrity]]. He wasn’t. My office shelves are full of these "books that miraculously explain our political moment" from over the years&nbsp;— ''Don't Think of an Elephant!'', ''God’s Politics'', ''The Radical Center''&nbsp;— and I’ve come to understand that their success is never an accident. Show me a book that captures the post-election zeitgeist of a worried intelligentsia, and I’ll show you a shrewd, ambitious author who sensed an opening and steered right into it. If the Pentagon could engineer a fame-seeking missile, it would look a lot like ''Hillbilly Elegy''.|||Matt Bai<ref name=bai/>}}
Vance originally became famous in 2016 for his book ''Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis'', written at the encouragement of [[Amy Chua]].<ref name="ChuaBook"/> The book describes his lifestyle while growing up in the Cincinnati, [[Ohio]] suburbs (elevation 742 feet), ''which is obviously the most hillbilly place one can grow up''.<ref>https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/jd-vance/hillbilly-elegy/</ref> It was very successful when it came out, especially in media circles, but even then there were warning signs of the lunacy that was to come. Vance's portrayal of the [[working class]] is couched in [[rugged individualism]],<ref>David DeWitt (July 18, 2024). [https://lailluminator.com/2024/07/18/ohio-vance/ "As a fellow Ohioan, I have some concerns about U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance"]. ''Louisiana Illuminator''.</ref> expressing that they're ultimately to blame for their own difficulties in life, that they have "the feeling that our choices don’t matter," and suggests that they "buy giant TVs and iPads" instead of working to better themselves.<ref>https://www.salon.com/2017/03/11/hillbilly-sellout-the-politics-of-j-d-vances-hillbilly-elegy-are-already-being-used-to-gut-the-working-poor/</ref> A particularly prescient article in ''[[Jacobin (magazine)|Jacobin]]'' by Bob Hutton views the book as a part of a tradition of [[elitist]] [[victim blaming]] such as in the boot-straps theme of the works of Horatio Alger and the infamous ''The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother'' by Amy Chua.<ref>https://jacobinmag.com/2016/10/hillbilly-elegy-review-jd-vance-national-review-white-working-class-appalachia/</ref>{{efn|Chua was his mentor at Yale, and advised him to write the book.<ref name="ChuaBook">Kwan Wei Kevin Tan (July 16, 2024). [https://www.businessinsider.com/meet-the-woman-who-elevated-jd-vance-from-obscurity-superstardom-2024-7 "Meet the woman who helped boost JD Vance from Ohio obscurity to 'Hillbilly Elegy' superstardom"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref>}} Despite his posturing about [[bullshit|his special insights into the reasons why Trump won white working-class voters]], he really just repeated the same old [[conservative]] mantra that poor people are lazy, and he provided hints of the [[wingnut|wingnuttery]] that was to come.

After the book, he founded a nonprofit pitched as an effort to combat opioid addiction and overdoses in [[Ohio]]; the group spent more on management salaries than such efforts,<ref name="BItax"/> hired an "addiction specialist" employed by a group funded by a major opioid manufacturer,<ref name="APSatel"/> spent money on political consultation (former employees later accused Vance of creating the group to launch his political career), and fizzled out.<ref name="NYTopioid"/> When Vance was elected Senator, he voted against an anti-opioid bill he co-sponsored, because he strongly opposed aid to [[Ukraine]] in the package deal.<ref name="OCJua"/>

==Our Ohio Renewal==
After publishing his book, which mentioned his family's personal struggles with opioid drugs (including [[death]]),<ref name="STATopioid"/> he started a nonprofit (Our Ohio Renewal, OOR) claiming to fight opioid abuse in Ohio, which spent more on management salaries than its stated goal then fizzled out of existence. A spokesperson for another group, Ohio Opioid Education Alliance, said she never heard of Vance's group.<ref name="BItax">Adam Wren and Meghan Morris (August 31, 2021). [https://www.businessinsider.com/jd-vance-anti-opioid-nonprofit-our-ohio-renewal-senate-campaign-2021-8 "We found tax records showing 'Hillbilly Elegy' author JD Vance's anti-opioid nonprofit faltered"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref> Our Ohio Renewal did, however, manage to hire "addiction specialist", who was employed by [[AEI]], a group in turn funded by Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin (an opioid drug).<ref name="APSatel">Julie Carr Smyth (August 18, 2022). [https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-entertainment-health-175153d8a80d93b2c9c6654a6a730de9 "Vance’s anti-drug charity enlisted doctor echoing Big Pharma"]. ''The Associated Press''.</ref> Vance himself was formerly employed by a law firm that [[lobbying|lobbied]] on behalf of that same company, Purdue Pharma;<ref>Amy Eskind (August 29, 2022). [https://people.com/politics/ohio-senate-candidate-jd-vance-risks-losing-gop-seat-in-congress/ "'Hillbilly Elegy' Author J.D. Vance Risks Losing Republicans a Senate Seat in Ohio This Year"]. ''People''.</ref><ref name="PoliticoPAC">Ryan Lizza and Rachael Bade (May 5, 2022). [https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2022/05/05/the-book-j-d-vance-doesnt-want-you-to-read-00030287 "POLITICO Playbook: The book J.D. Vance doesn’t want you to read"]. ''Politico''.</ref> Purdue ultimately planned to plead guilty to criminal charges regarding its production of the opioid.<ref>Natalie Sherman (October 21, 2020). [https://www.bbc.com/news/business-54636002 "Purdue Pharma to plead guilty in $8bn opioid settlement"]. ''BBC News''.</ref>

''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote that Our Ohio Renewal ultimately left behind just "a pair of op-eds and two tweets"; former employees of the group accused Vance of creating it simply to launch his political career, including by hiring political consultants through the nonprofit which was — remember — intended to help combat opioid addiction.<ref name="NYTopioid">David A. Fahrenthold (October 8, 2022). [https://archive.ph/31pET "J.D. Vance’s First Attempt to Renew Ohio Crumbled Quickly"]. ''The New York Times''.</ref> After his election as a US Senator, he voted against an anti-fentanyl (another opioid drug) bill that he himself co-sponsored (the FEND Off Fentanyl Act), because he prioritized opposing aid to [[Ukraine]].<ref name="OCJua">Marty Schladen (July 17, 2024). [https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/07/17/for-ohio-us-sen-jd-vance-is-not-backing-ukraine-more-important-than-the-fight-against-fentanyl/ "For Ohio US Sen. JD Vance, is not backing Ukraine more important than the fight against fentanyl?"]. ''Ohio Capital Journal''.</ref> In 2022, Vance insinuated President [[Joe Biden]] could be "intentionally" complicit in fentanyl trafficking because it would "kill a bunch of [[MAGA]] voters". He added: "It's like Joe Biden wants to punish the people who didn't vote for him and opening up the floodgates to the border is one way to do it."<ref name="STATopioid">Lev Facher and Sarah Owermohle (July 18, 2024). [https://www.statnews.com/2024/07/18/jd-vance-opioid-crisis-rhetoric-record-addiction/ "JD Vance’s rhetoric, and record, on the opioid epidemic"]. ''STAT News''.</ref> (Fentanyl is mostly smuggled into the US by the country's own citizens, including those hired by cartels specifically because they attract less scrutiny than migrants do.<ref>Fiona Harrigan (October 17, 2022). [https://reason.com/2022/10/17/dont-blame-migrants-and-open-borders-for-fentanyl-entering-the-country/ "Don't Blame Migrants and 'Open Borders' for Fentanyl Entering the Country"]. ''Reason''.</ref>)

==2022 Senate run==
{{cquote|Your [[Charlatan|grift]] is that you claim to understand poor people, [[Scapegoat|whose problems, you say, are the fault of]] gays, immigrants, and billionaires; and then [[Hypocrisy|you rise to power thanks to the money and support of a gay immigrant billionaire]] [Thiel].|||Timothy Snyder<ref>[https://snyder.substack.com/p/the-grift-bubble The Grift Bubble: A Political Theory of American Collapse] by Timothy Snyder (Nov 16, 2025) ''Thinking about…'' (Substack).</ref>}}
The first warning sign in J.D. Vance's run for Senate that he was going to be veering very, very far into [[wingnut]] territory with a sudden swerve from being a critic of [[Trump|former-President Trump]].<ref>https://time.com/6078483/j-d-vance-interview-trump/</ref> He switched from his earlier establishment conservativism (though he still retains the support of many of them) to a new [[right-wing]] [[populism]] in a competition with his fellow wingnut former Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel.<ref>https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/07/29/jd-vance-senate-election-rob-portman-ohio-501384/</ref>

Among the various actions that he has taken in his race to the right was his reference to "[[degenerate]] liberals".<ref name="NicholsA">Tom Nichols (July 14, 2021). [https://archive.ph/yYuUz "The Moral Collapse of J. D. Vance"]. ''The Atlantic'', via archive.today. [https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/07/moral-collapse-jd-vance/619428/ (Original link)].</ref> Vance's elitism reemerged in his comments about giving proxy votes to parents for their children, in which he insulted "the childless [[left]]" and in particular [[Kamala Harris]], [[Pete Buttigieg]], [[Cory Booker]], and [[Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez]] as "childless cat ladies" whose childfree status was interfering with "[[eugenics|a healthy ruling class]]".<ref>https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jul/26/ohio-senate-candidate-jd-vance</ref><ref>https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/aoc-jd-vance-cat-ladies-b1894081.html</ref> For the record, Kamala Harris has step-children who she is rather close to<ref>[https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a33577322/kamala-harris-children/ Does Kamala Harris Have Children? Get To Know The Presidential Candidate's Family] Women's Health Magazine</ref> and Pete Buttigieg adopted two children before Vance made this comment.<ref>[https://people.com/all-about-pete-buttigieg-children-8683180 Pete Buttigieg's 2 Children: All About Twins Gus and Penelope] People</ref> Vance is also a Catholic,<ref>[https://slate.com/life/2024/08/jd-vance-tim-walz-trump-kamala-religion.html J.D. Vance Used to Be an Atheist. What He Believes Now Is Telling.] Salon</ref> meaning that he is part of a religion run by a childless ruling class of its own, given higher ups in the Catholic Church are banned from marrying and having families.

That a GOP candidate feels the need to say nonsense like this reflects the continuing popularity of similar thought in the party. It is left up to the reader what to think about these comments. (Billionaire [[Peter Thiel]] apparently thought his bid for [[Congress]] was worth donating to.<ref>Ryan Mac and Lisa Lerer (February 14, 2022). [https://web.archive.org/web/20231225042226/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/14/technology/republican-trump-peter-thiel.html "The Right’s Would-Be Kingmaker"]. ''The New York Times''.</ref><ref name="VFnewright">James Pogue (May 2022). [https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/04/inside-the-new-right-where-peter-thiel-is-placing-his-biggest-bets "Inside the New Right, Where Peter Thiel Is Placing His Biggest Bets"]. ''Vanity Fair''. Quote: "J.D. Vance, running for the Republican nomination in Ohio, and Blake Masters in Arizona. Thiel has given more than $10 million to super PACs supporting the men's candidacies, and both are personally close to him. Vance is a former employee of Thiel's Mithril Capital ... These three—Thiel, Vance, Masters—are all friends with [[Curtis Yarvin]], a 48-year-old ex-programmer and blogger who has done more than anyone to articulate the world historical critique and popularize the key terms of the New Right."</ref>)

News reports summarizing and quoting contents from a leaked vulnerability analysis (produced by a Vance-friendly PAC funded by Thiel) still exist: weak spots identified by the PAC, many of which focused on contradictions between his words and his past, included Vance's old posts praising [[Bill Clinton|Bill]] and [[Hillary Clinton]], previously boasting that he was "eating sushi and getting [[Drunk|wasted]]", his living in "an opulent $1.4 million mansion", his work for a law firm that [[lobbying|lobbied]] for an opioid manufacturer and represented large mainland-[[Chinese]] companies, his flubbed "Our Ohio Renewal" nonprofit, the clerk work for [[Supreme Court]] justices [[Brett Kavanaugh]] and [[John Roberts]] by his wife whom Vance met at Yale Law School, and his owing parts of his career to the "Big Tech" heads he rhetorically criticizes like Jeff Bezos (Amazon), Eric Schmidt ([[Google]]), and of course Peter Thiel.<ref name="PoliticoPAC"/><ref>Liz Skalka (May 5, 2022). [https://www.huffpost.com/entry/jd-vance-opposition-research-ohio-senate_n_6272dd7ce4b00fbab6296314 "11 Things We Learned From The J.D. Vance Oppo Dump"]. ''HuffPost''.</ref>

During his run, on a far-right podcast with Jack Murphy, he revealed his more extreme views:<ref>[https://www.cleveland.com/news/2022/09/jd-vance-largely-avoids-pivot-to-center-in-ohios-us-senate-race-after-culture-war-heavy-republican-primary.html J.D. Vance largely avoids pivot to center in Ohio’s U.S. Senate race after culture-war heavy Republican primary] by Andrew J. Tobias (Sep. 04, 2022, 5:30 a.m.) ''The Cleveland Plain Dealer''.</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220510215331/https://jackmurphylive.libsyn.com/jd-vance-jml-070 JD Vance - JML #070] (Sep 20, 2021) ''Jack Murphy Live'' (archived from July 10, 2022).</ref>
*Millions of government workers should be fired regardless of the law, comparing it to post-[[World War II]] de-[[Nazi]]fication, or the purge of [[Ba'ath Party|Baathists]] following the downfall of [[Saddam Hussein]], referring to it as "de-wokeification"
*He compared the current United States to the late republican period of Rome before it became an [[Roman Empire|Empire]], indicating that he believes that [[Democrats]] are evil, and anti-[[Democracy|democratic]] actions need to be taken to stop them so that we can have Emperor Trump. It's no wonder since apparently Curtis Yarvin of the [[Neoreactionary Movement]] apparently got his ear.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/09/07/jd-vance-fascist-roman-imperialist-caesar/ How reactionary is MAGA? Try the first century B.C.] by Dana Milbank (September 7, 2022 at 6:28 p.m. EDT) ''The Washington Post''.</ref>
*He tweeted "Now everyone admits the vaccines don’t prevent transmission, it’s time to end these dehumanizing mandates."<ref>[https://archive.ph/Hoqmx An important story. Now that everyone admits the vaccines don’t prevent transmission, it’s time to end these dehumanizing mandates.] by J. D. Vance (2:38 PM · Oct 19, 2022) ''Twitter'' (archived from 20 Oct 2022 19:19:02 UTC).</ref>

Ultimately, he was able to win, as Ohio has become much redder over the years. However, it was a bit of a pyrrhic victory, as his opponent Tim Ryan was able to inspire Democratic turnout to the point that Democrats won a few house races that they shouldn't have even been competitive in. By comparison, Ohio's Republican governor Mike DeWine was reelected by a margin of over 25% in the same night that Vance only won by around 6%, and Rob Portman won the seat by almost 21% of the vote in 2016.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/11/08/us/elections/results-ohio.html Ohio election results], ''The New York Times''</ref>

Vance agreed with a conservative talk radio host that there wasn't a climate crisis, continuing with "And even if there was a climate crisis, I don’t know how the way to solve it is to buy more Chinese-manufactured electric vehicles. The whole EV thing is a scam, right?"<ref>[https://www.clayandbuck.com/ohio-senate-candidate-jd-vance-on-the-crumbling-economy Ohio Senate Candidate JD Vance on the Crumbling Economy] (July 28, 2022) ''The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show''.</ref><ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/democrats-jd-vance-ron-johnson-election-day-b2220291.html Climate at the 2022 midterms: Where Senate candidates stand and what’s at stake] by Ethan Freedman (08 November 2022 11:30 GMT) ''Independent''.</ref>

==2024 Vice Presidential Campaign==
Vance was nominated as Trump's running mate in 2024. People who pushed for Vance to be Trump's running mate behind the scenes included the [[Heritage Foundation]] (who lead [[Project 2025]]),<ref>Nicholas Riccardi (July 17, 2024). [https://apnews.com/article/rnc-republicans-heritage-foundation-project-2025-8cce6cfef6f5bdf45269146739222f80 "Outside RNC, conservative group defends its Project 2025 guidebook as Democrats ramp up critiques"]. ''The Associated Press''.</ref> Peter Thiel,<ref name="ThielLobby">Hasan Chowdhury, Beatrice Nolan, and Noah Sheidlower (July 16, 2024). [https://www.businessinsider.com/peter-thiel-jd-vance-veep-trump-election-kingmaker-2024-7 "Peter Thiel plays kingmaker again as Trump picks JD Vance for veep"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref> [[Elon Musk]],<ref name="ThielLobby"/> David Sacks,<ref name="ThielLobby"/> [[Tucker Carlson]],<ref name="ThielLobby"/> and [[Donald Trump Jr.]], who stated Vance has a "very high chance" of being elected President in 2028.<ref name="FT717"/> However, polls showed Vance was the most unpopular VP pick in years, outdoing even [[Dan Quayle]] and [[Sarah Palin]] (who at least had a significant amount of support and popularity).<ref>[https://youtube.com/watch?v=pbzImEpyF6s Trouble for Trump as Vance declared 'most unpopular VP pick in the history of polling' | Joe Twyman] YouTube</ref> His favorability benefited from the 2024 VP debate, which viewers rated as "generally positive" in tone.<ref>Molly Bohannon (October 2, 2024). [https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2024/10/02/tim-walz-jd-vance-polls-both-candidates-favorability-increases-post-debate/ "Tim Walz-JD Vance Polls: Both Candidates’ Favorability Increases Post-Debate"]. ''Forbes''.</ref> Vance was elected in November of 2024 as Vice President.

==Influences==
According to Ian Ward in ''Politico'', Vance has had seven influences that shaped his [[worldview]]:<ref>[https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/07/18/jd-vance-world-view-sources-00168984 The Seven Thinkers and Groups That Have Shaped JD Vance’s Unusual Worldview: Post-liberals, “crunchy cons” and monarchists.] by Ian Ward (07/18/2024) ''Politico''.</ref>
{{collist|2|
*{{wpl|Patrick Deneen (political theorist)|Patrick Deneen|,}} Catholic political theorist at the University of Notre Dame, and author of ''Why Liberalism Failed''
*[[Peter Thiel]], [[alt-right]] billionaire
*[[Curtis Yarvin]], a founder of the [[neoreactionary movement]]
*{{wpl|René Girard||,}} Catholic philosopher who inspired Thiel
*[[Sohrab Ahmari]], pro-[[authoritarian]] politico-religious chameleon
*{{wpl|The Claremont Institute||,}} "the intellectual nerve center of the Trumpist right"
*[[Rod Dreher]], [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Christian]] [[medieval]] fanboy in the mold of Ignatius Reilly of ''Confederacy of Dunces''
}}

Vance has some rather... interesting influences. He is a fan of conspiracy theorist [[Alex Jones]]<ref>Andy Kroll and Nick Surgey (July 16, 2024). [https://www.propublica.org/article/jd-vance-alex-jones-leonard-leo-teneo-maddow-video "In Private Speech, J.D. Vance Said the 'Devil Is Real' and Praised Alex Jones as a Truth-Teller"]. ''ProPublica''.</ref> and friends with neo-monarchist Mencius Moldbug, who he cites as an influence.<ref>George Michael (July 27, 2022). [https://theconversation.com/an-antidemocratic-philosophy-called-neoreaction-is-creeping-into-gop-politics-182581 "An antidemocratic philosophy called 'neoreaction' is creeping into GOP politics]. ''The Conversation''.</ref><ref name="VFnewright"/> Online, Vance follows nudist [[Bronze Age Pervert]] (BAP),<ref name="SilValGuy"/> whose [[eugenic]]ism about regenerating the "[[Aryan]]" race through a "{{w|Lebensborn}} program" is straight up [[neo-Nazism]]<ref>Jack Butler (January 18, 2024). [https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/bronze-age-meltdown/ "Bronze Age Meltdown"]. ''National Review''.</ref><ref>Jack Butler (February 10, 2023). [https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-bronze-age-pervert-seduced-right-wing-thought-leaders "How 'Bronze Age Pervert' Seduced Right-Wing Thought Leaders"]. ''The Daily Beast''.</ref> despite BAP's partial Jewish ancestry.<ref>Costin Alamariu (September 12, 2023). [https://archive.ph/dVgNk "Journalists at major American publications seem interested in me, an obscure reader of Plato. Gratuitously they claim things about my background. Here is my DNA."] ''Twitter'', via archive.today.</ref> Vance follows others in BAP's sphere like Raw Egg Nationalist,<ref name="SilValGuy">Ali Breland (July 17, 2024). [https://web.archive.org/web/20240717233942/https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/07/jd-vance-silicon-valley-far-right/679058/ "Silicon Valley Got Their Guy"]. ''The Atlantic''. Quote: "Vance is steeped in the discourse of the online right. On X, he follows niche but popular anonymous posters such as Bronze Age Pervert, Raw Egg Nationalist, and Lomez, who have either expressed racist beliefs or, in the lattermost’s case, released books by racists through his publishing house. Although people follow accounts on X for a number of reasons, what’s more telling is that Vance is reportedly friends with Curtis Yarvin, an anti-egalitarian monarchist blogger who is an influential figure among the intellectual online right. Vance says that he doesn’t cook with seed oils, a cause du jour of the online right, whose influencers say they cause obesity."</ref> who insulted people for not being "Aryan",<ref>RAW EGG NATIONALIST (January 6, 2024). [https://archive.ph/vHXQs "You will never be a real A10 Aryan."] ''Twitter'', via archive.today.</ref> and dubiously claimed to be a bodybuilder swallowing up to eighteen raw eggs a day with [[raw milk]].<ref>Gregory Davis (June 20, 2024). [https://hopenothate.org.uk/2024/06/20/egg-sposed-we-reveal-the-identity-of-far-right-bodybuilder-the-raw-egg-nationalist/ "Egg-sposed: We Reveal The Identity Of Far Right Bodybuilder 'The Raw Egg Nationalist'"]. ''Hope not Hate''.</ref><ref>RAW EGG NATIONALIST (April 3, 2020). [https://archive.ph/pa7Q8 "250ml of raw milk, as much cream as you like (up to the same volume as the milk), a generous helping of maple syrup and up to six eggs. I was taking three of these a day until the latter troubles intervened."] ''Twitter'', via archive.today.</ref> Vance seems to take some [[diet]] advice from this realm of influencers.<ref name="SilValGuy"/>

Vance supports the light version of the [[Lost Cause of the South]], uncoincidentally at the same time that Trump demanded that Fort Eisenhower be re-renamed after a [[slave]] owner.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/10/us/politics/trump-army-base-rename-confederate.html Trump Says Army Bases Will Revert to Confederate Names. The move would reverse a yearslong effort to remove names and symbols honoring the Confederacy from the military.] by Chris Cameron (June 10, 2025) ''The New York Times''.</ref><ref>[https://archive.ph/rRkjz JD Vance: "I feel like something happened like 10 years ago where every, it’s like you have to think that every single person that who fought for the Confederate side was an evil person. I just think that’s so stupid."] by @patriottakes (5:30 PM · Jun 11, 2025) ''Twitter'' (archived from 14 Jun 2025 00:59:55 UTC).</ref>
{{cquote|I feel like something happened like 10 years ago where every, it’s like you have to think that every single person that who fought for the [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] side was an [[evil]] person. I just think that’s so stupid.|||Vance}}

==Anti-abortion extremism==
{{main|Anti-abortion}}
[[File:Vance urinals.jpg|thumb|right|165px|Vance (left) in a bizarre photo from his 2003 high school yearbook.]]
Vance is so extreme on abortion that he cosigned a letter with his some of other Congressional colleagues to the Justice Department demanding that they enforce [[The Comstock Act]],<ref>[https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24834197-20230123-letter-on-comstock-to-doj letter to The Honorable Merrick B. Garland from James Lankford et al.] (January 25, 2023) via ''DocumentCloud''.</ref><ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2024/07/17/jd-vance-abortion-comstock-vice-presidential-nominee/ Vance urged DOJ to enforce Comstock Act, crack down on abortion pills: The Ohio senator and other GOP lawmakers conveyed their call for abortion restrictions to Attorney General Merrick Garland in a January 2023 letter.] by Dan Diamond & Meryl Kornfield (July 17, 2024 at 7:21 p.m. EDT) ''The Washington Post''.</ref> an act which prohibited not only sending [[Birth control|contraceptives]] across state lines, but also made illegal the sending of contraceptive or abortion ''information'' across state lines. The law was never repealed by Congress but was effectively nullified by the Supreme Court ruling on ''[[Griswold v. Connecticut]]''.

==Fascism==
{{main|Fascism}}
Vance, along with some other MAGA leaders, wrote an endorsement for the book written by noted fascist [[Jack Posobiec]] titled {{wpl|Unhumans|''Unhumans: The Secret History of Communist Revolutions (and How to Crush Them)''}}<ref>''Unhumans: The Secret History of Communist Revolutions (and How to Crush Them)'' by Jack Posobiec & Joshua Lisec (2024) War Room Books.</ref> The title would seem to be an only slightly-veiled reference to [[Nazi Germany]]'s term for people deemed as undesirable by the regime, ''Untermensch'' (or "subhuman").<ref>[https://www.unpopularfront.news/p/these-people-are-nazis These People are Nazis] by John Ganz (Aug 06, 2024) ''Unpopular Front''</ref><ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/05/opinion/jd-vance-fascism-unhumans.html The Weird Authoritarian Book Blurbed by JD Vance] by Michelle Goldberg (Aug. 5, 2024, 7:00 p.m. ET) ''The New York Times''.</ref> Vance's book endorsement states:<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20240709200625/https://www.amazon.com/Unhumans-Secret-History-Communist-Revolutions/dp/1648210856/ Unhumans: The Secret History of Communist Revolutions (and How to Crush Them)] by Jack Posobiec & Joshua Lisec (2024) ''Amazon'' (archived from July 9, 2024).</ref>
{{cquote|In the past, [[communists]] marched in the streets waving red flags. Today, they march through HR, college campuses, and courtrooms to wage lawfare against good, honest people. In ''Unhumans'', Jack Posobiec and Joshua Lisec reveal their plans and show us what to do to fight back.}}

As Vice Presidential running mate for Trump (and reiterated by Trump), Vance knowingly repeated the false accusation (which originated from a neo-nazi group called Blood Tribe) that legal [[Haitian]] immigrants in his own state of Ohio of stealing and eating pet [[cat]]s and [[dog]]s, a form of [[racist]] [[demonization]].<ref>[https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/15/politics/vance-immigrants-pets-springfield-ohio-cnntv/index.html JD Vance defends baseless rumor about Haitian immigrants eating pets] by Kit Maher & Chris Boyette (September 15, 2024) ''CNN''.</ref><ref>[https://apnews.com/article/haitian-immigrants-vance-trump-ohio-6e4a47c52b23ae2c802d216369512ca5 Trump falsely accuses immigrants in Ohio of abducting and eating pets] by Mike Catalini et al. (September 11, 2024) ''Associated Press''.</ref>

In a 2021 speech before the National Conservatism Conference titled "The Universities Are the Enemy", Vance quoted a 1972 private discussion between [[Richard Nixon]] and then-former Harvard professor [[Henry Kissinger]] about bombing the "bombing the bejeezus" out of North Vietnam (but not during [[Christmas]] because it would be bad optics). The Nixon quote was at the end of Vance's speech, "The professors are the enemy."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FR65Cifnhw J.D. Vance | The Universities are the Enemy | National Conservatism Conference II] (Nov 10, 2021) ''National Conservatism'' via ''YouTube''.</ref> Nixon's quote in context was "The press is the enemy. The press is the enemy. The establishment is the enemy. The professors are the enemy. Professors are the enemy. Write that on the blackboard 100 times and never forget it."<ref>[https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1969-76v09/d175 175. Conversation Among President Nixon, the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger), and the President’s Deputy Assistant for National Security Affairs (Haig)] (December 14, 1972) ''Office of the Historian''.</ref>

==The evolution of a stooge==
{{cquote|If you spend time listening to Vance, you quickly realize he is simply too smart to be this dumb.|||Marc Elias<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20250811220508/https://newsletters.democracydocket.com/jd-vance-is-donald-trumps-useful-liar Why JD Vance’s latest lie matters] by Marc Elias (August 11, 2025) ''Democracy Docket'' (archived from August 11, 2025).</ref>}}
{{cquote|He never offers details for how these plans will work, because he can't. Trump's promises are the needle in America's collective vein. … Trump is cultural heroin. He makes some feel better for a bit. But he cannot fix what ails them, and one day they'll realize it.|||Vance in 2016<ref>J. D. Vance (July 4, 2016). [https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/07/opioid-of-the-masses/489911/ "Opioid of the Masses"]. ''The Atlantic''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|What percentage of the American population has @RealDonaldTrump [[sexual assault|sexually assaulted]]?|||J. D. Vance, 2016<ref>Alex Isenstadt (May 3, 2022). [https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/03/jd-vance-win-ohio-primary-00029881 "A mole hunt, a secret website and Peter Thiel’s big risk: How J.D. Vance won his primary"]. ''Politico''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|We are, whether we like it or not, the party of lower-income, lower-education white people, and I have been saying for a long time that we need to offer those people SOMETHING (and hell, maybe even expand our appeal to working-class black people in the process) or a demagogue would. We are now at that point. [[Donald Trump|Trump]] is the fruit of the party's collective neglect.|||Vance in 2016<ref name=joseph>[https://www.vice.com/en/article/bvn4b8/jd-vance-trump-messages Trump-Endorsed Candidate JD Vance Once Said Trump Might Be ‘America’s Hitler’] by Cameron Joseph (April 18, 2022, 2:54pm) ''Vice''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|I go back and forth between thinking Trump is a cynical [[asshole]] like [[Nixon]] who wouldn't be that bad (and might even prove [[useful idiot|useful]]) or that he's [[Nazi analogies|America's Hitler]]. How's that for discouraging?|||Vance in 2016<ref name=joseph/>}}
{{cquote|I think Trump is going to run again in 2024. I think that what Trump should do, if I was giving him one piece of advice: Fire every single midlevel bureaucrat, every civil servant in the administrative state, replace them with our people. And when the courts stop you, stand before the country, and say, '[[Andrew Jackson|The chief justice has made his ruling. Now let him enforce it.]]'|||Vance in October 2021, openly advocating a [[coup]]<ref>[https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2022/05/j-d-vance-republican-senate-hillbilly-elegy-dangerous-authoritarian.html J.D. Vance Is a Dangerous Authoritarian], Jonathan Chait, ''Intelligencer'' 2 May 2022</ref><ref>[https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/04/inside-the-new-right-where-peter-thiel-is-placing-his-biggest-bets Inside the New Right, Where Peter Thiel Is Placing His Biggest Bets: They’re not MAGA. They’re not QAnon. Curtis Yarvin and the rising right are crafting a different strain of conservative politics.] By James Pogue (April 20, 2022) ''Vanity Fair''. This original published source of the quote refers to the date as circa Halloween 2021.</ref>}}
{{cquote|All you do is kiss my ass to get my support.|||Trump to Vance in front of an audience at a Vance campaign rally in October 2022<ref>[https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a41586894/tim-ryan-jd-vance-ass-kisser-tulsi-gabbard/ Trump Took J.D. Vance's Dignity, Then Tim Ryan Erased it from the Historical Record] by Charles P. Pierce (Oct 11, 2022) ''Esquire''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|I can’t say from experience how you’re supposed to know when you’ve officially become part of an [[Organized crime|organized crime family]], but if you feel it necessary for your professional advancement to show up at a courthouse and pay respect to a patriarch charged with fraudulent payments to a [[porn]] star, chances are you check all the boxes.|||Matt Bai on Vance being Trump's mouthpiece outside Trump's criminal trial in May 2024<ref name=bai>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/05/17/jd-vance-trump-veepstakes-conversion/ J.D. Vance wasn’t just some hillbilly after all: His journey from author to Trumpist senator is a fable for the GOP’s devolution.] by Matt Bai (May 17, 2024 at 7:45 a.m. EDT) ''The Washington Post''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|Vance was scathing about Trump, in other contexts calling him a 'total fraud,' a 'reprehensible' 'moral disaster' … But Vance, like many other Republicans including [[Ted Cruz]] and his Yale Law School classmate [[Vivek Ramaswamy]], soon realized that to get ahead in right-wing politics, it would not do to tell the truth about Donald Trump. Vance reportedly commissioned polling to test whether his comments would hurt him politically, and 'was particularly concerned that his opposition to Trump would turn off base GOP voters.' Since then, he has become one of Trump’s most aggressive defenders.|||Nathan J. Robinson, ''Current Affairs''<ref>Nathan J. Robinson (July 17, 2024). [https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/the-opportunist "The Opportunist"]. ''Current Affairs''.</ref>}}
July 2024: Trump's running mate!

==Memetic attacks and bipartisan mockery==
{{main|Meme}}
Since the 2024 election, Vance has become the favorite target of grotesque internet memes using his image (often portraying him as some kind of chubby manchild with absurd and exaggerated facial features), from both the Left ''and'' the Right. This is likely reflecting the public's low opinion of Vance as a self-serving and uncharismatic opportunist with a chameleonic political identity, with one composite meme even reading, "And yet a trace of the true self exists in the false self."<ref>[https://gizmodo.com/notes-on-a-meme-the-grotesque-pleasure-of-bloated-jd-vance-pictures-2000572683 Every day that goes by brings more and more horrifying pictures of the Vice President of the United States and I love them all.] by Matthew Gault (March 6, 2025) ''Gizmodo''.</ref><ref>[https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/and-yet-a-trace-of-the-true-self-exists-in-the-false-self-circle-of-life And Yet a Trace of the True Self Exists in the False Self / Circle of Life] ''Know Your Meme''.</ref><ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/mar/07/jd-vance-vice-president-america-memes There are 1,000 grotesque memes of JD Vance – and they’re all more likable than the real thing] by Marina Hyde (7 Mar 2025 07.46 EST) ''The Guardian''.</ref>

==See also==
*[[Mo Brooks]]: Another insane candidate who ran for Senate in 2022, but he fortunately lost (not that {{wpl|Katie Britt|the person who won}} is any less insane, mind you)
*[[John Kasich]]: For a much more reasonable Ohio Republican
*[[2022 midterm elections]]
*[[Ron DeSantis]] - Another former Trump critic and MAGA ringkisser, who he’s been compared heavily to.

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

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