Vice President JD Vance took a break from the shadows in order to pay tribute to conservative Charlie Kirk… but before his death, Vance had been pretty quiet, don’t cha think?
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From poverty to the White House, Vance’s life has largely been shaped by the influential people around him. Most of America knows him from that “childless cat ladies” comment and debunked conspiracy that Haitian migrants in Ohio are “eating the cats and dogs” in Ohio, but there’s more to the second-in-command than meets the eye.
Vance told USA Today he’s prepared to become president if “God forbid” something “terrible” were to happen to Trump. Amid the president’s diagnosed health conditions, we’re looking at exactly what a Vance presidency would look like… at how we even go to this point.
In the Beginning…
As told in his memoir turned movie, “Hillbilly Elegy,” Vance was born to a drug addict mother and absent father. Eventually, his grandparents took him in and get the credit of raising him in the Appalachian communities of Ohio. Despite being raised by union Democrats in a poor neighborhood, Vance grew up to be one of the strongest faces in the Republican party. Certainly his upbringing had something to do with his current politics, but it’s his time in the military and in politics that would change his life forever.
Joining the Marine Corps
“When I joined the Marine Corps, I did so in part because I wasn’t ready for adulthood,” Vance wrote in his book. “It was the Marine Corps that first gave me an opportunity to truly fail, made me take that opportunity, and then, when I did fail, gave me another chance anyway.” So, Vance joined the Marines working in public affairs, Stars and Stripes reported. He wrote about the troops, escorted civilian reporters and spoke about things going on at the base. “I was lucky to escape any real fighting,” Vance said.
Never Trumper Senator Turned Enthusiast
Early in his political career, Vance stood out as one of the many “Never Trumpers” in the Republican party. Like his colleagues, the Ohio senator criticized the then-45th president and vowed to never support him… then Trump ran for a second term with the support of some of Vance’s close allies. The then-senator quickly changed his tune and was tapped as Trump’s running mate in 2024.
Becoming Vice President
Almost like a light switch, Vance evolved from a common Ohio local politician to a household Republican ready to defend President Trump no matter the cost. During their campaign in 2024, Vance found himself in controversy often after spewing MAGA conspiracies and even going up against Minn. Gov. Tim Walz in the vice presidential debate.
‘Eating the Cats, Dogs’
Yup… you knew this was coming. Americans everywhere watched in horror during the second presidential debate between Trump and former Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump falsely claimed that Haitian migrants were eating pets in Springfield, Ohio. But while the country berated Trump for repeating this baseless conspiracy, the truth is Vance was responsible for feeding the information to the president. It all started with a tweet that Vance reposted and later used as a talking point in several interviews, BBC reported. Vance later doubled down on the sentiment, proving just how far he’s willing to go for his agenda. “If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what i’m going to do,” he said.
‘Childless Cat Ladies’
Another misstep in the Trump-Vance campaign was when Vance got on national television and called out Democrats, who according to him are “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.” The resurfaced clip went viral, fueling single women across the country to criticize Vance. This is when many folks began forming negative opinions about Vance, according to Navigator Search.
Vance to the Shadows
With all the controversy surrounding Vance, it’s not shocking that after Trump’s win against Harris, the vice president sat back for a while. He let Trump expectedly take the wheel while Vance let the heat die down from his many campaign blunders. Still, the vice president has always been behind the scenes, ensuring that things go as planned…
JD Vance and Elon Musk
Vance has a tendency of surrounding himself with wealthy white men, and Musk was no different. Musk quickly joined forces with Trump in 2024, becoming his biggest campaign donor and eventual wing man at DOGE. Meanwhile, Musk was often overshadowing Vance, which had folks joking about Musk really being Trump’s VP. That’s why Trump’s blow-up with the Tesla mogul meant great news for Vance, who could finally get back some of the shine. Still, Vance described Musk as a “very good friend” after his break-up with the president.
JD Vance and Peter Thiel
As we told you last month, billionaire Peter Thiel is anti-democracy and pro-Trump, but what’s more interesting is his connection to Vice President Vance. They met in 2011 when Vance was at Yale Law School, according to POLITICO. He attended one of Thiel’s speeches and from there, Thiel became Vance’s mentor. The billionaire also looked out big time for Vance during his 2022 Senate Campaign. Thiel positioned himself as a close ally to President Trump, even donating over $1 million to Trump’s campaign. In addition to his wealth, Thiel has also solidified himself as an integral force in the Trump campaign– despite his Neo-nazi ties.
Project 2025
Project 2025 is largely regarded as the Republican party’s playbook for Trump’s second term. So far, they’ve knocked off an estimated 47 percent of their proposed policies, and while Trump continues to deny any connection to Project 2025, it’s Vance who has a close relationship with the founders and writers of the playbook. Kevin Roberts is the founder of Heritage Foundation, the conservative mastermind behind Project 2025, and he told reporters in 2024 he was privately “really rooting” for Vance to be Trump’s VP pick.
Vance even penned the foreword to Roberts’ book where he praised the Heritage Foundation as “the most influential engine of ideas for Republicans from Ronald Reagan to Donald Trump.”
Where Has Vance Been??
While Trump and Musk were going back and forth online, many Americans were wondering where the hell is Vice President Vance? He’s not like past VPs like the overly involved Dick Cheney or the everyday man Joe Biden. With Trump taking most of the shine, Vance rarely makes national headlines… But when he does, Vance often blunders his words. As we previously reported, Vance’s one-liner during the White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy got him in hot water with the media.
A Tie Breaking Vote
One of the most important jobs of any vice president is being the tie breaking vote during an undecided Senate vote. Vance is the acting president of the Senate, and because the Senate is so closely split between the Democratic and Republican parties, the real decisions often come down to him.
Vance was the tie breaking vote to pass the GOP-led Big Beautiful Bill Act in July, which adds trillions to the national debt while cutting Food Stamps, Medicaid and key federal agencies.
Vance’s Billion-Dollar Black Book of Allies
Like many in office, a huge part of Vance’s successes could be attributed to his black book of wealthy and powerful allies. From Musk and Thiel to the Claremont Institute, Vance has many billion-dollar machines working in his favor. So far, the country’s has only gotten a glimpse as to what Vance can do with his connections, but if the day comes where the vice president turns into the next leader of the free world, Vance will surely unlock his arsenal of influences.
What Does JD Vance Believe In?
As we mentioned earlier, Vance’s politics now are vastly different than they were before he was picked as Trump’s running mate. And now that the president is running things according to his own plan, it’s unclear exactly what Vance believes in — besides Trump. We know family values are important to the 41-year-old. He is against abortion, same-sex marriage and gun control. As president, Vance would likely champion these efforts in dramatic ways reminiscent of his Republican predecessors.
How Is Vance Different than Trump?
Although Trump’s bold rhetoric is slowly rubbing off on Vance, there are still stark differences between the men and presumably how they would run the country. For starters, Trump is known for being divisive, racist and sometimes extreme in his politics. Vance, on the other hand, offers a more tamed alternative, especially as someone who has maintained valuable relationships for decades. Vance would be the first millennial president, differing from Trump, who is a baby boomer.
Continuing the Legacy of Trump
Many critics of Trump say they’re waiting for these four years to be over so we can get back to some sense of normalcy. But if Vance ever gets into the executive seat, you can expect Trump’s same playbook to be continued. As a avid supporter of the Heritage Foundation, Project 2025 and of course President Trump, Vance would not only be predicted to continue the legacy of his predecessor, but he would be expected to do so.
If Project 2025 is not complete by the end of Trump’s time in office, Vance will likely pick up from exactly where he left off at, which would mean bad news for Black Americans.
Remembering Charlie Kirk
We previously reported that after Kirk was assassinated on Sept. 10, MAGA immediately rallied in order to honor the conservative podcaster and to target critics. Vance, like others in Trump’s camp, moved to praise Kirk, even leading the charge to pass a law in his memory. Vance has since demanded a crackdown on far-left organizations in response to Kirk’s murder, the Guardian reported
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