Donald Trump Picks J.D. Vance As Vice Presidential Running Mate

Donald Trump has selected Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) as his vice presidential running mate.

Vance, first elected in 2022, rose to national prominence during Trump’s run for the White House in 2016, as his memoir Hillbilly Elegy became a national best-seller and he was called upon to explain the appeal of the Celebrity Apprentice host to the working class.

Trump wrote on Truth Social, “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. J.D. honorably served our Country in the Marine Corps, graduated from Ohio State University in two years, Summa Cum Laude, and is a Yale Law School Graduate, where he was Editor of The Yale Law Journal, and President of the Yale Law Veterans Association. J.D.’s book, “Hillbilly Elegy,” became a Major Best Seller and Movie, as it championed the hardworking men and women of our Country. J.D. has had a very successful business career in Technology and Finance, and now, during the Campaign, 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….

Vance, 39, has moved from Trump detractor (he voted for Evan McMullin in 2016) to steadfast defender and even flame thrower. He has insisted that he as wrong about Trump once he entered the White House, and benefited from his endorsement in the 2022 race an open Ohio U.S. Senate seat.

In the aftermath of the assassination attempt on Trump on Saturday, Vance blamed it on the Biden campaign.

He wrote, “Today is not just some isolated incident. The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.”

In the lead up to the announcement, as speculation was rampant that Vance would be the pick, CNN’s Van Jones said, “This is not a kumbaya pick.”