While preparing for the first (and probably only) national debate of the presidential season, JD Vance worked from the comfort of his Cincinnati home using Zoom. For practice sessions, he enlisted Minnesota Republican Tom Emmer to pose as his opponent. According to those in the know, he enlisted the services of Jason Miller, a campaign strategist for Donald Trump, and his own wife, Usha, for the discussion.
He claims, however, that he is not required to prepare.
“We have well developed views on public policy so we don’t have to prepare that much,” Vance said during a Wednesday morning Teamsters news call. “We are much more assured, and to be honest, there’s no need to practice if your words aren’t going to be hidden.”
His statement encapsulated the reasons Republicans, and Trump in particular, persist in their support: He’s quick to speak his mind and gets animated while interacting with the press. In contrast to Trump, he is renowned as a nimble debater who remains steadfastly on message throughout.
Marco Rubio, a senator from Florida and an ally of Vance’s who was also a candidate for Trump’s running mate, predicted that many Americans would be impressed by Vance’s performance, particularly when asked questions in that style. “I mean, he’s been getting ready for that debate by answering the same questions he’ll get at the primary—and probably even before then, during his tenure in the Senate and his prominence in public life.”
Vance is currently running for a second time, following his 2022 successful bid for the Ohio Senate. The “Hillbilly Elegy” author and alumnus of Yale Law School is well-known for her work as a MAGA torchbearer and powerful Trump campaign communicator and policy whisperer. Beyond his duties as a campaign media spokesman, he frequently appears on Sunday shows and cable news networks, defending Trump’s proposals (sometimes in front of hostile questioners).
Vance has stated during his campaign that he is most prepared for the debate in New York on October 1st since he is used to holding news conferences during his rallies to draw attention to the fact that Vice President Kamala Harris has made very few appearances in the media. Rallies in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Michigan occupied the most of his time this week as a campaigner.
Regarding the question about his preparations, Vance stated, “What me and Donald Trump are going to keep on doing is going everywhere and talking to everybody,” during Monday’s event in Charlotte, North Carolina. “We engage in conversations with both friendly and hostile media outlets, as well as national and local news outlets, and we do this because we believe that the American people are entitled to leaders who work to earn their support rather than simply receiving it.”
The transition of Vance to the national political arena, however, has not been without its bumps.
Resurfaced footage of the Ohio Republican complaining about the country being led by “childless cat ladies” has gone viral since former president Trump selected him as his running mate in July. He took heat for saying that tax breaks should be extended to couples who do not have children. When he spread the falsehood that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were consuming pets, he received criticism from moderate Republicans. (Vance now claims he was being sarcastic when he said “childless cat ladies.”)
Among Republicans, Vance maintains a strong showing; a recent AP-NORC survey found that 57% of registered Republicans had a positive impression of him. However, the survey did reveal a few flaws, such as the fact that Democrats are more critical of Vance than Republicans are of Democratic Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (by a margin of 80% to 61%). Among independents, 43% had a bad impression of Vance, compared to 30% of Walz.
Someone familiar with the debate planning, who asked to remain anonymous, said that Vance intends to criticize Walz during the debate for his record as governor, particularly for how he dealt with the riots in Minneapolis following the murder of George Floyd. On the campaign trail, Vance questioned Walz on his 24-year military service. In 2018, Walz explained his shift in favor for an assault weapons ban by saying, “weapons of war, that I carried in war.” Vance plans to continue this practice in his interview with Walz. “Walz misspoke,” according to Harris’s campaign.
Someone else said that Vance will try to cast Walz as a liberal and undermine his moderate reputation by bringing up some of the socially progressive policies that Walz signed into law while governor, such as a measure that mandates the provision of menstrual products to students regardless of their gender identity, the anonymous source said.
In his 2022 debates with former Representative Tim Ryan, Vance utilized a similar tactic. Vance successfully shifted the focus of the Senate debates from immigration policy to the economy in his prior campaigns. He linked Ryan to the then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, portrayed Ryan as “too liberal,” and questioned Ryan’s accomplishments over his 20 years in office.
According to Vance, at his last Senate debate, Ryan stated that he supports practical solutions. “So, Tim, during your twenty years in Washington DC, what were you doing on those reasonable solutions?” he asked the congressman, turning to face him.
“Kamala, day one was 1400 days ago, what the hell have you been doing the whole time?” he asked at a Michigan event on Wednesday, continuing a phrase he has used repeatedly throughout the campaign, particularly when referring to Harris’ day one promises. No comment was received from the Harris-Walz campaign.
“Many people are familiar with him. Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), who is tight with Vance, indicated that they are familiar with his narrative. “Even if they didn’t read the book, they definitely watched the movie. Who knows, maybe they’ll eventually meet him in person or hear him speak for the first time.”