Another adviser, in a call a few days ago, argued that Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R-Virginia) or Rubio would be better choices, given Vance’s past anti-abortion statements, and asked Trump how he would defend Senator Vance’s positions, which he sees as being to the right of his own.
Senators, donors, conservative media figures and other allies called Trump in the final 48 hours before the announcement, urging him to back a candidate other than Rubio or Vance, arguing that the other candidates could draw more voters to Trump’s coalition, said five people familiar with the conversations, who, like others interviewed for this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive issues.
Trump listened to each candidate’s arguments, but he said he had had a hunch about Vance for weeks, maybe months, because of his Rust Belt upbringing, his foreign and economic policy positions, his combative television appearances and his academic background. Vance had influential supporters, including Donald Trump Jr. and tech billionaires.
Speaking later with Florida delegates in Milwaukee, Trump said choosing Vance was a tough choice, likening him to “The Apprentice,” a reality TV show in which he starred. But he also said it was about ensuring the Republican Party’s future after he’s gone. “He’s going to be a superstar,” Trump told delegates and donors gathered at the Baird Center, one attendee said.
Whether that gamble — one of Trump’s most significant this year — will pay off remains to be seen. In the two weeks since, President Biden has dropped out of the race, Vice President Harris has emerged as the likely Democratic nominee, energizing the Democratic Party, while Vance’s first week away from the convention has been a rollercoaster, drawing unwanted attention to the Republican candidate.
Over the past week, the Trump campaign has been trying to clear up some of the controversial comments Vance has made, including past interviews in which he mocked “childless cat women” and took a much stronger stance on abortion than Trump.
Additionally, previous emails between Vance and a friend reported by The New York Times show Vance hating police for mistreating people, calling Trump a “morally reprehensible man,” and saying “the more white people who want to vote for Trump, the more black people will suffer.” A Trump adviser called the emails “not ideal.”
Vance has also come under attack from friendly quarters, including the editorial board of the conservative Wall Street Journal, social media personality Dave Portnoy and conservative media star Ben Shapiro, who have questioned the Trump campaign’s vetting and whether its selection of Vance could backfire.
Some Republican strategists worry that Vance could erode support from suburban women, a demographic Trump sees as declining after his 2016 victory and his 2020 defeat. “There’s a constant conversation among Trump’s allies about whether the president made a bad choice,” said one longtime adviser, who said his “awkward public behavior” has fueled text-message disputes.
Trump campaign spokesman Stephen Chang defended Vance’s performance as Trump’s running mate, saying the criticism was “the hustle of naive people who have no idea what’s going on. They’re so naive, they live in an alternate universe.”
Trump campaign staff say the former president still has confidence in Vance. The two appeared together at a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday night and at a rally in Minnesota on Saturday. Vance flew to Oklahoma City on Friday to be the headliner at a fundraiser alongside oil tycoon Harold Hamm, which reportedly raised more than $2 million. He is expected to continue his busy travel schedule, touring Midwestern states to raise funds. The campaign is also pleased that Vance has been harsh in his attacks on Harris in recent speeches.
“President Trump is thrilled to have selected Senator Vance as his running mate, and they are the perfect team to take back the White House,” Chang said. “Meanwhile, the Democrats are in complete disarray after the coup that forced Biden out of the campaign, proving they are the real threat to democracy.”
Advisers say Trump knew Vance had criticized him in the past. People familiar with the investigation say Trump’s team was aware of some but not all of the high-profile past comments, and they expect more revelations to come. Trump’s advisers say they have watched many of Trump’s past interviews, read his book, “Hillbilly Elegy,” and asked questions in addition to going through more formal paperwork.
“A thorough and exhaustive vetting process was conducted and there is no question that Senator Vance is the right person to be the next Vice President of the United States. In politics, when things get tough, people get scared and they curl up in a ball, but that is not the case with Senator Vance, and certainly not with President Trump,” Chang said.
Kevin Madden, a spokesman for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign, said the Trump-Vance team “appears to have been blindsided by past comments.”
“Every day in a presidential campaign, you have a political colonoscopy,” Madden said, “but in this case, we’re talking about a 39-year-old who’s a third of the way through his term as a senator, and that’s why he’s off to such a shaky start.”
Vance’s particularly tough start came as a pleasant surprise to the Harris campaign, according to a Harris campaign staffer who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations: They expected Vance to face questions about his past criticism of Trump, but did not anticipate the harsh criticism online.
“We never expected to see a story about a woman who loves cats continue to be in the news,” the aide said. “It’s just happening naturally, without us prompting it. … I’ve never seen anything like this. It’s very strange.”
The Harris campaign has sought to highlight Vance’s past statements, including his stance on abortion, an issue Trump has often avoided and one that polls show is a weak spot for the Republican Party with voters. A person close to the campaign said choosing Vance made the debate easier.
KamalaHQ, the Harris campaign’s fast-track X account, repeatedly posts old content from Vance. In one video clip from a 2021 talk about no-fault divorce, Vance says that divorce, even after domestic violence, “may have worked out well for the mother and father — I’m skeptical — but it’s really not worked out well for the children that come out of those marriages.”
In audio clips from a 2022 podcast, Vance advocates for a “federal response” to restrict women from traveling across state lines to get an abortion, and in a video recorded at a speaking event after the release of his 2016 book, he says Trump “is a really bad candidate and, frankly, I think he’s a really bad person.”
Vance said the clips about policy positions were taken out of context and that his position on Trump has changed since seeing him conduct himself as president.
Vance drew widespread ridicule and derision when he said on Fox News in 2021 that female politicians who don’t have children, like Harris, are “childless catwomen who are miserable in their lives,” adding that they have “no direct stake” in the future of the United States.
Vance appeared on Megyn Kelly’s show to try to clarify his earlier comments. “I don’t hate cats. I don’t hate dogs. I have a dog and I love my dog,” he said. “People are so focused on the sarcasm that they’re not really looking at what I said, Meghan, what I said — I’m sorry, but it’s true. It’s true that we’ve become anti-family. It’s true that the left has become anti-children.”
Vance spokesman William Martin said he was “not surprised” that Democrats were attacking Vance and that Vance would instead highlight the Biden administration’s record on inflation and immigration. “No matter what the left-wing media wants you to know, these are the issues voters actually care about,” Martin said.
Vance had been endorsed by a range of influential figures, including former President Donald Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., tech billionaire Elon Musk and media figure Tucker Carlson.
One of Trump’s aims in picking a candidate was to field a Midwestern candidate who could “walk the walk” in states like Pennsylvania and speak to blue-collar voters. Trump has struggled among white men, and advisers say Vance could help shore up that base.
Another aim was to tap into Mr Vance’s network of key donors, including in Silicon Valley, where Mr Trump loved to speak on television, advisers said.
“JD’s book is number one on Amazon right now. People are paying to read his life story. The Harris campaign is going to have to pay TV networks and social media platforms to tell her life story,” said Justin Safee, a Florida lobbyist who has raised money for Trump.
David Urban, a longtime Trump supporter in Pennsylvania, said he believes Vance’s personal story will resonate with blue-collar voters.
“If he were to say this to people at a town hall or a rally, how many people are affected by drugs or alcohol? How many people in this crowd are working two or three jobs and feeling like they can’t get ahead? How many people in this crowd joined the military for their own personal growth?” Urban said.
So far, Vance has received a warm welcome, albeit on a much smaller scale than Trump’s.
The campaign’s first flurry of excitement came early on at a rally for Vance in his hometown of Middletown, Ohio, on Monday, when hundreds of people packed his high school auditorium, including his mother, a beloved math teacher and other childhood friends, chanting “JD!”
The candidate, appearing for the first time on the national stage, was distracted when an audience member yelled at Vance about needing ID to vote, and the ensuing tirade was the most watched moment of the entire event.
“The weirdest thing to me is that Democrats are saying anything they believe is racist. No, they’re saying anything they do is racist. I drank Diet Mountain Dew yesterday and today. I’m sure they’ll say that’s racist too,” he said.
Greg Heather, 68, watched the event and said he had some reservations about Vance’s style of speaking but believes Trump and Vance will win.
“He’s not used to it yet,” Heather said, “but he’ll get used to it.”
