Just two days after the rally shooting, former President Trump announced on social media Monday that he has chosen Ohio Congressman J.D. Vance as his running mate.
Trump announces J.D. Vance as running mate
Vance, who will turn 40 in August, is a stark contrast to Trump, 78, and Biden, 81. If Trump takes the White House, Vance would be the third-youngest vice president in history.
In the posting, Trump wrote: “After a long period of deep thought and reflection, and weighing the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited for the office of Vice President of the United States is Ohio Congressional Senator J.D. Vance.”
As a Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq War, Vance will bring military experience to the campaign. He also holds right-wing populist views in line with Trump’s “America First” slogan and the “Make America Great Again” movement. For example, Vance opposes U.S. aid to Ukraine and has fought to delay the confirmation of Biden’s judicial nominees in protest of Trump’s conviction in the New York hush-money case.
In an official statement following Trump’s vice presidential announcement, Biden campaign chairman Jen O’Malley Dillon referenced Vance’s opposition to abortion rights and the Affordable Health Care Act and said he would help Trump implement “Plan 2025,” a a right-wing group’s plan for Trump’s second term.
In his statement, Dillon wrote, “Donald Trump chose J.D. Vance as his running mate because Vance will do what Mike Pence won’t do on January 6: do everything in his power to support Trump and his extreme MAGA agenda, even if it means violating the law, no matter what the harm to Americans.”
Biden campaign prepares to counter Vance’s nomination
According to NBC News, Biden’s campaign is preparing to paint Vance as an “extremist” and merely an extension of Trump’s own positions and resume.
Vance’s conservative stance on abortion will be a primary focus of the Biden campaign, as will his support for overturning the results of the 2020 election, the people familiar with the matter said.
Vance repeated Trump’s claim about winning the 2020 election, referring to election fraud without evidence. He also said he would try to overturn the results of the 2020 election, unlike the Jan. 6, 2021, choice of then that Vice President Mike Pence made.
Trump’s list of potential running mates has shrunk significantly from 12 in recent weeks. He confirmed to Fox News earlier on Monday that he was about to announce his running mate, ending months of speculation.
Around 10 a.m. EST Monday, Vance and his wife entered a black SUV outside their home that was part of a convoy of three black SUVs escorted by Cincinnati police, CNN reported.
Meanwhile, two other running mate favorites – Florida Congressional Sen. Marco Rubio and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum – are gathered in Milwaukee, where they are expected to address the Republican National Convention later this week.
On Monday afternoon, Rubio and Burgum were told in quick succession that they would not be Trump’s running mate.
Vance, a former Trump critic, had published the 2016 bestseller Hillbilly Elegy, which recounts his experiences growing up in a small town in Kentucky and the plight of poor, rural white Americans. He refused to vote for Trump in 2016, saying he was “harmful and is leading the white working class to a very dark place.” However, Vance has since embraced Trump’s views on issues such as trade and immigration, and railed against big tech companies, thus winning the former president’s endorsement in the 2022 midterm elections and defeating six other contenders to be elected to Congress.
It’s worth noting that Vance’s wife, Usha Vance, is a highly accomplished attorney and the daughter of Indian immigrants, which brings diversity to the Trump campaign.
