Donald Trump’s VP pick and 2024 running mate, JD Vance, drew both laughs and tears as he spoke at the Republican National Convention Wednesday night, making his case for why Americans need to elect him and Trump, the “once and future president of the United States of America.”
From hilarious family anecdotes to serious policy observations, JD Vance enthused the crowd at the Republican National Convention (RNC). “I promise you this, I will be the vice president who never forgets where he came from,” Vance, author of the bestselling autobiographical book "Hillbilly Elegy' said. “And every single day for the next four years, when I walk into that White House to help President Trump, I will be doing it for you, for your family, for your future, and for this great country.”
JD. VANCE: "Tonight is a night of hope—a celebration of what America once was, and with God's grace, what it will soon be again. And it is a reminder of the sacred duty we have to preserve the American experiment .. to choose a new path for our children and grandchildren." pic.twitter.com/PqLcarNbFv
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 18, 2024
He opened his speech by referring to the assassination attempt against Donald Trump over the weekend. “Tonight is the night of hope, a celebration of what America once was, and with God's grace, what it will soon be again.”
He continued, “It is a reminder [of] the sacred duty we have to preserve the American experiment, to choose a new path for our children and grandchildren. But as we meet tonight, we cannot forget that this evening could have been so much different. Instead of a day of celebration, this could have been a day of heartache. In the last eight years, President Trump has given everything he has to fight for the people of our country. He didn't need politics, but the country needed him.”
Fortunately, Trump survived and inspired his supporters with his defiant fist pump and cry, “Fight! Fight! Fight!"
J.D. VANCE: "As we meet tonight, we cannot forget that this evening could've been so much different. Instead of a day of celebration, this could've been a day of heartache and mourning. For the last 8 years, President Trump has given everything he has to fight for the people of… pic.twitter.com/OxeS659FUW
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) July 18, 2024
“Even in his most perilous moment,” Vance said of Trump, “we were on his mind; his instinct was for us, for our country, to call us to something higher, to something greater, to once again be citizens who ask what our country needs of us.”
He slammed the media for lying about Trump for so long before the assassination attempt occurred.
In terms of politics, Vance repeatedly emphasized jobs, American workers, and economic troubles. Joe Biden has long been working to “flood [America] with cheap Chinese goods, with cheap foreign labor, and in the decades to come, deadly Chinese fentanyl,” whereas Trump will be “a leader who won't sell out to multinational corporations, but will stand up for American companies and American industry,” Vance said. He also highlighted the importance of energy independence instead of relying on foreign dictators, as the Biden administration does, and slammed the border crisis.
Vance made the crowd laugh, too, with stories about his pistol-packing Mamaw, who kept guns stashed around her house for home defense. She loved both God — and the f-word. “She once told me, when she found out that I was spending too much time with a local kid who was known for dealing drugs, that if I ever hung out with that kid again, she would run him over with her car,” Vance said to laughter. “She said, ‘JD, no one will ever find out.’” But thanks to Mamaw, Vance was inspired to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps after 9/11, and his journey to success began.
J.D. Vance tells the story of his Mamaw, who loved God, loved her grandson, and whose language could make a sailor blush. The crowd erupts in “Mamaw! Mamaw!” chants.@JDVance1 pic.twitter.com/24JL8LUJsu
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) July 18, 2024
Vance also praised and expressed love for his wife, his kids, and his mother, who was there watching her son speak. "Ten years clean and sober,” he gushed. It was clear that Vance puts his family at the center of his life, and that the RNC crowd was inspired by this. Vance also praised the families and workers across America. “This moment is not about me, it’s about all of us,” he said.
JD Vance: “I’m proud to say that tonight my mom is here. 10 years clean and sober. I love you mom.”
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) July 18, 2024
JD’s mom: “That’s my boy.” pic.twitter.com/rZNjWNaPVT
His vision was both personal and political—for his own children and for all Americans:
[Under Biden,] prices soared, dreams were shattered, and China and the cartels [were operating] all across the border … ladies and gentlemen, that is not the end of our story. We've heard about villains and their victims. I've talked a lot about that, but let me tell you about the future. President Trump's vision is so simple and yet so powerful. We're done, ladies and gentlemen, catering to Wall Street [and] will commit to the working man. We're done importing foreign labor. We're going to fight for American citizens and their good jobs and their good wages. We're done buying energy from countries that hate us. We're going to get it right here from American workers in Pennsylvania and Ohio and across the country...
...We will protect the wages of American workers and stop the Chinese Communist Party from building their middle class on the backs of American citizens. Then, together, we will make sure our allies share in the burden of securing world peace. No more free rides for nations that betray the generosity of the American taxpayer … as President Trump showed with the elimination of ISIS and so much more, when we punch, we're going to punch hard. And together, we will put the citizens of America first, whatever the color of their skin. We will, in short, make America great again.
Throughout, Vance’s message was one of unity and patriotism. “We have a big tent in this party on everything from national security to economic policy, but my message to you, my fellow Republicans, is we love this country and we are united to win,” he emphasized. He cited America’s founding principles and the Constitution and added that America is also our “homeland.”
As Vance himself said, Wednesday was a “night of hope, a celebration of what America once was and with God's grace what it will soon be again.”
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