"Why is no one talking about Usha Vance being the first Indian American and the first Hindu to serve as the Second Lady of the United States?!" an X user named Ashtronaut Girl posted on the platform recently.
Why is no one talking about Usha Vance being the first Indian American and the first Hindu to serve as the Second Lady of the United States?! pic.twitter.com/b0XhQVIE0w
— Ashtronaut Girl | Æ (@AshtronautGirl) January 23, 2025
I'd venture to guess that the right isn't talking about it because most of us could care less what groups someone belongs to and see everyone as an individual. I'd also venture to guess that the left isn't talking about it because they are obsessed with group identity and can't stand the fact that the GOP has become increasingly diverse in recent years.
What I'd really like to know, however, is why is no one talking about Usha Vance at all, regardless of her ethnic background or religious views. I realize that being the second lady (or, um, second spouse) isn't the most exciting position in the world, and it doesn't always attract much attention (I'm sure Doug Emhoff is thankful for that), but the Vance family has taken the nation by storm, and I, for one, am here for it.
When Trump picked JD Vance to be his vice president, I didn't love the choice, but I'll admit he's grown on me for many reasons, including the fact that we're of the same generation. His Jim Halpert-esque glances at the camera during the vice presidential debate against Tampon Tim Walz and his overall performance also won me over, as has his lack of fear when it comes to calling out the media and Democrats when they say stupid things — "I don't care, Margaret." But there was something else I couldn't quite put my finger on until now.
Earlier today, while working on an article about Down syndrome and abortions, I was sorting through some social media photos of Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy's youngest daughter, hanging out in the Oval Office with the president and vice president, and in some of them, Vance is playing with the little girl. That's when it hit me; the Vance family kind of gives me "they're just like us" vibes. It's been a while since we've had a young family in office, but just watching them parent on Inauguration Day seemed to tell me more about JD and Usha than anything else I'd encountered to this point. They just came across as very down-to-earth, real, and relatable people.
Adorable moment the son of Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha pats his parents on the head.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) January 21, 2025
pic.twitter.com/q9u1MdHvvi
That said, it's been just under seven months since Donald Trump chose Vance as his running mate, and I feel like I know very little about Usha, our new second lady, but admittedly, I'm dying to know more. It's obvious she adores her husband and her children, and given that she has three kids under the age of eight — Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel —I'm sure she'll spend much of her time over the next four years focusing on being a mom and potentially trying to give them as normal and as private a life as they can possibly have at this point.
But I'm still curious about her, and I know some of our readers here at PJ Media have confessed they are too, so I set out to see what I could learn about the 39-year-old San Diego native. She's quite accomplished. Her husband has even declared that he's "humbled" by that fact. Many say she's served as an important advisor to his political career, even helping him prepare his strategy for that amazing debate performance back in the fall.
She attended Yale and earned a bachelor's degree in history. While there, she spent her spare time volunteering as a Girl Scout leader and working as a tutor for elementary school students. Upon graduation, she taught English and American history to young students in China. Eventually, she earned a master's degree in early modern history from Clare College, Cambridge and a law degree from Yale.
She has served as a law clerk for several prominent judges, including Supreme Court Justices Brett Kavanaugh and John Roberts. She went on to join the law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson as an associate. As a matter of fact, she was still working there up until last July when Trump chose her husband to be the next vice president.
Her success could have something to do with her family's close ties to academia. Born Usha Chilukuri to Teluga Indian immigrants, the second lady grew up in California. Her father is a mechanical engineer and works as a professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at San Diego State University, and her mother is a molecular biologist, professor, and provost at the University of California, San Diego. Even her 96-year-old great-aunt, who is known as India's oldest active professor, still teaches physics.
JD and Usha met while they were law students at Yale, and during her speech at the Republican National Convention, she called him "the most interesting person I knew." Vance has called her a "genetic anomaly" and said he broke every dating rule by telling her he was in love with her after their first date. Even though others have said they were total opposites, it worked. They were married in 2014 in Kentucky.
Usha Vance is hugely impressive. Mother of three, top litigator, clerked for Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, future Second Lady.
— Rita Panahi (@RitaPanahi) July 18, 2024
pic.twitter.com/0xvOzXHa6T
Here's another cute video in which JD and Usha talk about how they met and the earlier days of their relationship.
Listen to JD and Usha Vance in 2017 as they share the story of how they fell in love and their plans to grow their family.
— Colton Blake 🇺🇸 (@ColtonBlakeX) January 29, 2025
How can you not love their simplicity and genuine connection? pic.twitter.com/ujVUH9PgVS
I'm also going to go out on a limb and suggest that the second lady likes music. She is currently a Washington National Opera trustee. Previously, she was the secretary of the board of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Fun fact: She also played the flute in her high school marching band.
Now that I got all the important stuff out of the way, can I point out that Usha is gorgeous? During our live blog on Election Day a couple of weeks ago, I asked our readers whose fashion choices they liked the best, and many agreed that it was our pretty in pink second lady. She looked amazing in her Oscar de la Renta "custom peony cashmere coat with scarf wrap and complementing tea-length dress."
An ongoing celebration of American history and tradition. For the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies, Second Lady Usha Vance wears a custom peony cashmere coat with scarf wrap and complementing tea-length dress. pic.twitter.com/kT5o0EpXeK
— Oscar de la Renta (@OscardelaRenta) January 20, 2025
Second lady Usha Vance and U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance with their children arrive during an indoor inauguration parade at the Capital One Arena
— Remoulade Sauce (@Remisagoodboy) January 20, 2025
Here is a look at Mrs. Vance’s custom Oscar de la Renta dress 💕💕 pic.twitter.com/QNmONR5j2m
It wasn't the first time she'd worn Oscar de la Renta, and with any luck, it won't be the last. It's a match made in fashion heaven.
Incoming Second Lady, Usha Vance, wears a custom noir velvet gown with asymmetric floral accents and a sweetheart neckline for the Vice President’s Dinner.
— Oscar de la Renta (@OscardelaRenta) January 19, 2025
Photographed by Emily J. Higgins pic.twitter.com/nM5V9qgusV
Women have also praised her for embracing her "natural beauty" and aging with confidence because she evidently refuses to dye the few gray strands in her hair.
Ladies, in a world that is constantly telling women not show any signs of aging, be an Usha instead of a Kardashian.
— Meg Brock (@MegEBrock) January 22, 2025
As a middle-aged woman with my own greying hair, I love and admire her self-confidence and natural beauty.
What a classy lady! We need more of this! pic.twitter.com/gzLY6lCNko
I suspect the fashion magazines will snub her like they do the first lady. The liberal media in general has already attempted to make her out to be some sort of radical progressive because her politics have ebbed and flowed over the years like most people's do. She's even admitted during a Fox News interview that she and the vice president don't agree on every issue, and an old law school friend has said "Usha has never been an overly political person." But it's been said that she's her husband's "spirit guide" when it comes to his political career, so whatever or whomever she has or hasn't supported in the past, I really don't care. She's on the right track at this point in time.
I have no idea what Usha Vance will or won't do as second lady. Her official White House bio doesn't give us any indication yet either. What exactly do second ladies do anyway? I had to look that up. Many have continued to work at their previous jobs. Some have volunteered, while others have set their own political agendas. Some wrote books. Some simply served in sort of a hostess role. According to the White House History website, since the 1980s, the second spouse has had an official office and employed three staff members: a chief of staff, communications director, and policy aide.
While I have a feeling this one will spend a great deal of time just being a wife and mom, I can't imagine she won't do a little something more. And I can't wait to see exactly what that is.
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