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JD Vance took to the stage at the Republican National Convention on Wednesday for a speech that took a trip through his life story to show how his history has shaped his politics, a moment that many will look to as the official launch of his vice presidential campaign as Donald Trump’s running mate.
Vance spoke about his family, growing up in rural Ohio, ”a place that had been cast aside and forgotten by America’s ruling class in Washington,” and said Biden’s policies at the time hurt his town and others like it as manufacturing and other blue collar jobs declined.
He quickly pivoted to Chinese exports, adding that “Joe Biden screwed up,” and his town and others “paid the price.” Vance has previously said that China is the biggest threat to the US — a threat he later connected to immigration across the southern border, saying China was sending fentanyl across it into America.
His speech hit on similar issues in several key swing states both parties would need to win in order to win the presidency: Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio. Vance’s nomination is seen as a direct appeal to voters in these states from the Trump campaign.
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After weeks of anticipation, Trump announced Vance as his VP pick Monday, cementing his legacy in a younger generation of MAGA leaders.
A political newcomer, Vance gained national recognition following the release of his bestselling memoir Hillbilly Elegy chronicling his troubled childhood in the American rust belt living with a drug-addicted mother. Once a “never Trump guy” who compared the former president to Hitler, Vance significantly changed his rhetoric during his 2022 campaign for Ohio Senator to become one of Trump’s loudest cheerleaders, securing his endorsement.
Vance has fashioned himself as a Trump policy loyalist during his less than one term in office, particularly in border and foreign policy. He has proposed mass deportations of undocumented migrants and is one the Senate’s biggest critics of Ukraine funding.
He has also made clear he is willing to back Trump over his legal matters, parroting Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was rigged and saying he would have helped Trump overturn election results in his capacity as Vice President.