When Sen. JD Vance received the GOP vice presidential nomination in Milwaukee on Saturday, it was far from the Ohio stage where he stood two years ago to defend the change of heart of Donald Trump.
But his explanation in the March 2022 debate about why he didn’t oppose Trump to become an outspoken supporter today is the perfect hook for critics who are unhappy with Trump’s choices.
And those words are something that every Republican who thinks Vance is not loyal enough needs to hear, every Republican who opposed Trump before he became president — and even the NeverTrumpers who oppose him now.
The question came up during the March 2022 primary debate, where Vance faced off against four rivals for the GOP Senate nomination.
In the context of candidates seeking Trump’s endorsement in the race, the moderator asked Vance to take his position in support of Trump with scathing comments Vance made about Trump six and seven years ago.
Vance’s reply was: “I was wrong.”
“I have been very public about the fact that I voted for the president in 2020, that I was wrong about the president in 2015-2016, and he has been the greatest president of my life, for a very simple reason – there are many, but one reason that very important – is that he exposes the corruption in Washington, DC”
Check out the video here:
Vance cited another reason for the change in appearance – his personal life has changed with baptism in the Catholic church, and he and his wife already have three children.
And now they are older, perhaps wiser, and have the experience – along with the rest of the country – to see what Donald Trump can do in the White House – and how his opponents will stop him.
And that’s a compelling reason for anyone who wasn’t a Trump supporter during the 2016 primary race to have supported him in 2020 — and to support him now.
There’s a reason even liberal polls (like one by The New York Times, of all places) show Americans remember the Trump years fondly. Discounting the COVID pandemic and the George Floyd riots, it was a time of peace and prosperity.
The economy is in shambles, unemployment is low, and the now war-torn Middle East is seeing real signs of peace with the Trump-brokered Abraham Accords.
It should also be noted that neither COVID nor the death of the drug-addicted Minneapolis forgery suspect is Trump’s responsibility, but Democrats and the radical left are using both shamelessly as weapons against Trump and the American people.
The machinations of the deep state were revealed in the form of now-former FBI director James Comey’s blatant partisanship in attacking Trump (along with retired Army General Michael Flynn, Trump’s first national security adviser and a host of others in Trump’s orbit).
The first impeachment of Trump was so ridiculous that it is almost impossible to remember (hint: It has to do with the interests of Trump – and the Democrats who cover it – Hunter Biden’s criminal lifestyle, Joe Biden’s abuse of power as vice president, and the corruption-ridden country in Ukraine) .
The main impact is to show the country how petty, and impatient Trump’s political opponents are.
The mainstream media is also embarrassed to the point of almost unimaginably chasing after a fake Pulitzer Prize for reporting on the “Russian collusion” hoax, and hyperventilating endlessly about the “wall of closure” on Trump. (This is an energy that Washington reporters have not shown when covering the Biden administration, oddly enough.)
All that – and there’s a lot more – is visible to anyone who cares to be seen, and JD Vance apparently cares to be seen.
He sought and won Trump’s endorsement in the 2022 GOP Senate primary in Ohio, which could lead to his victory.
Now, he is Trump’s official running mate in Trump’s bid to return to the White House. Trump’s opponents — Republican and otherwise — could learn from Vance’s words in 2022.
Trump supporters — who may think Vance isn’t loyal enough — can learn, too.
Experience is the best teacher. And in this case, the lesson is clear.
This article first appeared in The Western Journal.
