JD Vance forced to listen to insult after insult during excruciating media interviews

Republican vice-presidential candidate was called out for ‘trashing his own people’ in his book Hillbilly Elegy and for being funded by Silicon Valley billionaires

Graig Graziosi
Thursday 22 August 2024 20:38 BST
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JD Vance is shown supercut of Democrats insulting him
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Louise Thomas

Louise Thomas

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Senator JD Vance was subjected to a gauntlet of his Democratic opponents insulting him during several recent interviews.

During an interview with Fox News, anchor Martha MacCallum asked the senator about Democratic vice presidential candidate Governor Tim Walz calling him "Mr Fancy Pants Ivy League" and pointing out that no one from his small town high school went to Yale.

“I had 24 kids in my high school class and none of them went to Yale,” Walz said, referencing Vance's alma mater. “But I’ll tell you what, growing up in a small town like that, you learn to take care of each other.”

Vance said he was proud that he went to Yale, and said he was surprised Walz was so critical.

“And more importantly, I’m proud of all the people who sacrificed in order to give me a better life. I would think Tim Walz would want to praise people who sacrifice to give their children and grandchildren a better life, not put me down,” Vance said. “But I guess this is the political order of the day — he’s gonna attack me, that’s fine.”

JD Vance sat for several interviews the week of the Democratic National Convention, where he addressed the various insults lobbed at him during the event
JD Vance sat for several interviews the week of the Democratic National Convention, where he addressed the various insults lobbed at him during the event (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Vance participated in a different interview with NBC News, where host Tom Llamas said Walz accused the senator of trashing “your own people” in his book Hillbilly Elegy. He also pointed out that Walz highlighted Vance's deep ties to Silicon Valley, including right-wing tech billionaire Peter Thiel.

The Republican called it a “nasty personal attack” and said Walz had to talk about him because he could not talk about Vice President Kamala Harris making Americans' lives better.

On Wednesday, Vance was forced to watch a supercut of Democrats attacking him during an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg laid into Vance's 2021 comments about the “childless left” having no commitment to the future of the US. He said that many of the people he served with while he was in Afghanistan did not have children, but said their “commitment to the future of this country was pretty damn physical.”

Vance brushed it off as a "sarcastic remark" that Buttigieg turned into something to distract from the fact that his leadership has seen “higher transportation costs, higher fuel costs, and higher food prices for Americans citizens all over our country.”

During Congressman Jamie Raskin's speech, he asked Vance if he realized there was going to be a “job opening” during the Capitol riot, noting that the rioters “tried to kill your predecessor,” referring for former Vice President Mike Pence.

He accused Raskin and the Democrats of making “themselves the victims,” but did not address the violence during the Capitol riot or the calls from participants to "hang Mike Pence."

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