There has been much talk about Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) possibly being named Donald Trump's vice president.
One obstacle to that becoming a reality is Vance's previous comments about Trump, which he now says he was all wrong about.
Talking Points…
- Vance's previous comments about Trump
- Vance says he got it all wrong
- Analysis
When Vance first dipped his toes into the political waters, he found himself in the Never-Trump gang. He did not hold back his opinions, and he let them fly often on social media when it came to Trump. For instance, referring to Trump, Vance posted on X in 2016:
"My god what an idiot."
During a 2016 interview with Charlie Rose, Vance, while discussing Donald Trump, told Rose:
"I'm a Never Trump guy. I never liked him."
Vance was considering cashing in on the notoriety of his book, "Hillbilly Elegy," in 2016, but instead, he just worked as a contributor for CNN and continued to do the talk show circuit, all the while building up his profile. When Vance finally decided to run for office in 2021, he started to change his ways regarding Trump.
I have always believed that Vance saw Trump's momentum in the GOP and just decided that if he wanted to actually be elected, he would have to ditch the Never-Trump rhetoric and get on board. But how would Trump perceive that?
Vance reached out to Trump, and he somehow convinced Trump that he was on board with the MAGA agenda, so Trump endorsed Vance despite his previous negative comments about Trump. Now, however, those comments may be the only thing that stands between Vance being the VP and someone else getting the nod, so he is doing as much damage control as possible to address those comments. In addressing those past comments, Vance confessed:
"But, look, my view on Donald Trump — I have been very clear on this — is, look, I was wrong about him.
"I didn't think he was going to be a good president, Dana, and I was very, very proud to be proven wrong. It's one of the reasons why I'm working so hard to get him elected."
I never really had an opinion about Vance one way or the other when he was running for office. Now that he has been in office, it appears as though he is doing a good job, and with Trump accepting him into the fold, who knows what the future will hold for him.
Today, however, I do not see him getting the nod as VP simply because Trump knows he cannot afford to have those past comments from Vance regurgitated during debates or in ads as we head down the stretch. Having said that, I can totally see Vance in a significant cabinet position for Trump because Trump truly does like the guy… but it just won't be VP.
