Vance: Trump’s running mate vows to fight for ‘forgotten’ America

JD Vance, Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick, pledged in a prime-time speech to fight for the American working class, which he said has been “sidelined and forgotten” by Democrats.

Introducing himself to millions of Americans watching his election on television, the Ohio senator drew on his humble Midwestern roots to attack “career politicians” like President Joe Biden.

In his speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he claimed that Trump was the “last best hope” for Americans.

Trump and his running mate will challenge the Democratic White House ticket, currently comprised of Mr. Biden and his vice president, Kamala Harris, in the November election.

Mr. Biden’s account on X, formerly Twitter, fired back at Mr. Vance on Wednesday night over his positions on abortion and Ukraine.

Mr Vance, 39, hopes to become one of the youngest vice presidents in US history.

In his speech, he traced his journey from his difficult childhood in a small Ohio town to the U.S. Marines, Yale Law School and finally the U.S. Senate.

The author of the bestselling memoir Hillbilly Elegy, about his impoverished family in the Appalachian mining region, said “the American ruling class” had destroyed communities like his hometown with trade deals and foreign wars.

“From Iraq to Afghanistan, from the financial crisis to the Great Recession, from open borders to stagnant wages, the people who govern this country have failed and failed again,” he said.

He continued: “Donald Trump represents America’s last hope to restore what, if lost, may never be regained.

“A country where a young man from the working class, born far from the corridors of power, can step onto that stage.”

The running mate, who is married to Usha Vance, a lawyer and daughter of Indian immigrants, said the United States has traditionally welcomed newcomers but should not import foreign labor.

“When we allow new arrivals, we do so on our terms,” ​​he said.

Mr. Vance was previously an opponent of Trump, once calling the Republican an “idiot” who could become “America’s Hitler.”

Then a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley, he later reconciled Trump.

He won the former president’s endorsement and was elected to the Senate in 2022, taking office the following year.

Democrats have echoed some of Vance’s past statements, including that he “doesn’t really care what happens to Ukraine” and his support for a national abortion ban.

He recently moderated his position on abortion to align with the official Republican platform, which says the issue should be decided by individual states.

He did not mention the war in Ukraine in his speech, nor did he talk about foreign policy, which was the theme of the third day of the party conference.

Mr Vance said US allies must share the burden of securing world peace and that America would avoid conflict but “strike hard” if provoked under a second Trump presidency.

He began his speech by referring to the assassination attempt against Trump that occurred last Saturday.

“They accused him of being a tyrant,” he said. “They said he had to be stopped at all costs. But how did he react? He called for national unity, national calm.”

Immediately after the attack, Mr. Vance blamed Mr. Biden’s rhetoric and warnings that his Republican rival posed a threat to democracy.

Most Americans didn’t really know him until Wednesday night.

A CNN poll last month showed that 13 percent of registered voters said they had a favorable view of Mr. Vance and 20 percent said they had an unfavorable view — nearly two-thirds had never heard of him or had no opinion.

Some convention attendees said Wednesday they were still learning more about his biography.

Cindy Dore and Jackie Canon, two Republican delegates from Louisiana, said they were excited about Trump’s choice.

“He’s young and dynamic,” Ms. Dore said.

She said she enjoyed Hillbilly Elegy, but other than that she didn’t know much about Mr. Vance.

The speeches began shortly after it was announced that President Biden had been diagnosed with COVID-19 and had temporarily suspended his campaign activities.

The highlight of the Republican convention will be Donald Trump’s speech on Thursday night.

Chris Devine, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton and co-author of Do Running Mates Matter?, told the BBC that vice presidential picks tend to have a fairly small effect on the overall race.

“If people view J.D. Vance as insufficiently experienced, they will have a less favorable opinion of Donald Trump and his judgment,” he says. “Not by much, but maybe a little.”

But Mr. Devine also noted that Mr. Vance is an “incredibly talented communicator” despite being a political newcomer.

Additional reporting by Kayla Epstein and Brandon Livesay