07/16 – International News Update

Former President Donald Trump announced his choice of running mate on July 15, picking Ohio Senator J.D. Vance.

Trump made the announcement on his social media network Truth Social, saying: “After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance of the Great State of Ohio.”

Soon after the announcement Vance received a formal nomination from the Republican party at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The choice of vice presidential candidate is somewhat interesting given that Vance himself was once a strong critic of Trump during the beginning of his political career and during his presidential campaign against Hillary Clinton in 2016. 

In the past Vance had dubbed Trump  “a total fraud,” “a moral disaster” and “America’s Hitler.”

However, his tone has changed over the years to staunch support for the former president which Vance says was due to Trump’s performance in office.

In 2021, Vance apologized for his criticism of Trump in an interview with Fox News. Last month, he told Fox “Look, I was wrong about Donald Trump. I didn’t think he was going to be a good president,” Adding:”He was a great president, and it’s one of the reasons why I’m working so hard to make sure he gets a second term.”[Fox News]

In 2022, Vance landed a seat in the US Senate representing Ohio after being endorsed by Trump.

In the wake of an assassination attempt on Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, Vance wrote on the social media platform X accusing President Joe Biden’s campaign of inciting the violence. 

He wrote: “The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs.” He added: “That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.”

With the upcoming Presidential election in November, midwestern states are expected to play a critical role in swaying the turnout. 

In Trump’s announcement of Vance as his VP pick, he wrote that Vance “will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond,” in an appeal to midwestern voters. 

In response to Trump’s announcement nominating Vance, Biden’s campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement: “Donald Trump picked J.D. Vance as his running mate because Vance will do what Mike Pence wouldn’t on January 6: bend over backwards to enable Trump and his extreme MAGA agenda, even if it means breaking the law and no matter the harm to the American people,” [AP News]

The statement was made in reference to an insurrection made by a pro-Trump mob in the US Capitol Building on January 6 2021 following Trump’s loss in the 2020 presidential election. 

Meanwhile, President Biden wrote on X: “Here’s the deal about J.D. Vance. He talks a big game about working people. But now, he and Trump want to raise taxes on middle-class families while pushing more tax cuts for the rich.”

If Trump wins in the November election, Vance will be the second youngest vice president, tied with Richard Nixon. Vance’s vacant Senate seat would be filled by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, a moderate Republican. [Politico] 

Opinion: 

Leading up to this week’s Republican National Convention, speculation about who Donald Trump would select as his hopeful Vice President had been swirling for months. 

Trump’s VP shortlist included names such as North Dakota Governor Doug Bergum, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, and Florida Congressman Byron Donalds.  [AP News] 

Ultimately, Trump chose 39-year-old Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, who the media had tipped as the most likely candidate.

Similar to his 2016 campaign, Trump’s VP choice is clearly made on tactical grounds concerning campaign strategy. His previous running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, was chosen to court evangelical Christian voters. [BBC]

This time, in 2024, Trump selected the up-and-coming young senator J.D. Vance from Ohio, a crucial swing state in the November race. This selection demonstrates Trump’s perceived importance of securing votes from industrial Midwestern battleground states, which will likely decide the upcoming presidential election.

Vance’s background will help Trump focus on courting the demographic of working-class voters. 

Vance’s initial rise to popularity came through his personal memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” published in 2016. The memoir explains his blue-collar upbringing and how it influenced his worldview and inspiring rise into national politics. [BBC]

Vance appeals to average, lower, and working-class Americans through his own lived experience of the “American Dream,” rising from nothing to become a successful and prominent national civil servant. He also holds an accredited Ivy League law degree and has served in the military.

Although initially an avid “anti-Trumper” during Trump’s first presidential bid in 2016, Vance has since become an outspoken defender of the former President, garnering the support of both Trump and his supporters. He holds similar views on notable policy issues as President Trump, including trade, immigration, foreign policy, and the war in Ukraine. [BBC] 

At this point in the presidential campaign race, Trump’s choice for running mate makes sense when considering these factors and the possible choices leading up to the RNC. 

Should Trump win in November and return to the White House, J.D. Vance’s role as Vice President, along with his age and political alignment, will likely make him the prospective heir to the MAGA throne and the Republican presidential nomination in 2028. 

— K.M./P.T.