Several House Republicans are privately criticizing former President Trump’s choice of Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) as his running mate, warning that the pick will not help — and could harm — the party’s chances of winning in November.
Republicans — speaking to The Hill on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive topic — raised concerns about Vance’s foreign policy positions, lack of experience and inability to expand the Republican coalition beyond Trump’s base.
There are undoubtedly many Vance supporters at the House GOP conference, especially hard-line conservatives — including those in the House Freedom Caucus — who favor the populist, America First perspective that the vice presidential nominee espouses. And the Trump campaign vigorously defends the choice.
But Republicans who spoke to The Hill — including veteran lawmakers, moderates and Reagan-style conservatives who support a vigorous foreign policy — said far more of their colleagues have doubts about Vance.
“He was the worst choice of all the options. It was so bad I didn’t even think it was possible,” said one House Republican. “Anti-Ukraine, more populist. He adds nothing to Trump’s ticket. He energizes the same people who love Trump.”
“I think if you asked a lot of people in this building, nine out of ten on our side would say he’s the wrong choice,” said a second House Republican. “He is the only person who can cause serious harm.”
A third House Republican — who said “there is a great deal of dissension” over Vance at the conference — argued that if Trump falls short against Vice President Harris in November, it will be Trump’s vice presidential pick that is to blame.
“The prevailing feeling is that if Trump loses, [it’s] because of this choice,” said the legislator. “That doesn’t help.”
Harris’ rise exacerbates election concerns
Anxiety surrounding Vance has become more pronounced after President Biden withdrew from the 2024 race and threw his support behind Harris, a move that is energizing Democrats, boosting their campaign coffers and turning the tide. political scenario turned upside down.
“I was worried the whole time, but now it’s really worrying,” said a fourth House Republican. “That doesn’t make it any easier.”
The rise of a Black and Asian-American woman to the top of the ticket — and the contrast it draws with the Trump-Vance ticket — is a source of anxiety for Republicans who had hoped to see more diversity in their own nominees.
Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and North Dakota Governor Kristi Noem (R) were at one point floated as candidates for the vice presidential nomination, although neither was a finalist.
“He wouldn’t be my first choice,” said one of the House Republicans. “I thought we would have a female candidate, but they quickly [dismissed that idea]…Nikki Haley would have been great, but he never will because she ran into him…Kristi shot her puppy.
“I think that’s a little problematic when you put yourself in that position because it’s going to bring women together,” a fifth House Republican said of Harris. “And who do you have that can bring women together in [Republican] ticket, is the question.”
‘I would make the same choice’
Trump’s selection of Vance, however, energized the Republican Party’s base and elevated an heir apparent to the MAGA movement.
And Trump, his campaign and his staunchest supporters are rejecting criticism of Vance’s selection, arguing that the ticket will see victory in November.
“President Trump is thrilled with his choice of Senator Vance, and they are the perfect team to take back the White House,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung told The Hill in a statement.
Asked Wednesday whether he would have chosen another vice presidential candidate if he had known Harris would be at the top of the Democratic ticket, Trump told reporters: “No, I would make the same choice.”
“He is doing very well. It really stuck,” she added.
Even House Republicans who were not immediate Trump supporters are backing Vance as his vice presidential pick. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who supported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) in the Republican Party primary, said the names on the ticket must be “sympathetic” to each other.
“I think he’s a great choice because I think he’s very aligned with the president in most important ways and can reflect the president,” he said. “The vice president must be in solidarity with the president.”
Expanding the Republican Tent
But because the first-term senator’s views are largely aligned with Trump’s, some Republicans worry about his ability to appeal to voters who are not already ardent supporters of the former president.
House Republicans say other vice presidential candidates — such as Haley, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) — could have helped expand the Republican coalition behind Trump with their more moderate behavior and toned down rhetoric.
“It’s not that he has a bad name, he just doesn’t bring out a single voter that Trump didn’t already have. That’s the problem,” said one of the House Republicans. “Every other option they were considering brought some other type of voter to the table in some way.”
“Vance brings Trump voters out. You know who else brings in Trump voters? Trump,” they added. “That’s why many of us are scratching our heads.”
One of the House Republicans compared the current dynamic to the 2016 election, when Trump’s selection of then-Indiana governor Mike Pence (R) to be his running mate reassured Republicans skeptical of the former president’s rapid rise. president and added balance to the ticket.
“I was a little bit, at 16, on the fence, and Pence walked in and I said, ‘Okay,’” the lawmaker said. “We need someone like that to grow their base.”
Political concerns amid the short term in the Senate
Some House Republicans have also questioned Vance’s foreign policy positions — particularly his isolationist stance when it comes to aid to foreign allies.
The Ohio Republican has been a prominent voice in the Senate opposing additional aid to Ukraine, voting against the foreign aid package in April that included about $60 billion for Kiev.
Years before that vote, during a 2022 podcast interview, Vance said “I have to be honest with you, I really don’t care what happens to Ukraine one way or another,” comments that still reverberate in Republican circles today .
A sixth House Republican cited those comments in criticizing Trump’s decision to add him to the ticket.
“Obviously, some of the rhetoric concerns me a little bit,” the lawmaker said. “I think some of the rhetoric made some people nervous.”
Vance’s stance on foreign policy was in the spotlight this week when the senator was notably absent from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at a joint meeting of Congress because, according to the campaign, he had “duties to fulfill as the Republican candidate for vice president. ” Netanyahu is scheduled to meet Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Friday.
Harris, of course, also missed the prime minister’s speech because she was traveling through Indiana, although she met with him on Thursday.
One House Republican, however, characterized Vance’s skipping the speech as “a problem,” while another was furious with his reasoning for missing it.
“It’s bulls——,” the lawmaker said of Vance blaming his absence from campaign trips. “He can set his agenda however he wants.”
Other Republicans, however, are excited about Vance’s foreign policy outlook, arguing that his worldview could help change the status quo at a time when change is sorely needed.
“I’m excited about J.D. Vance and I agree with his foreign policy, actually, for many reasons,” said Rep. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.), a hard-line conservative member of the House Freedom Caucus. “I think we really need to look at our foreign policy position around the world, from a financial standpoint, from an imperialist standpoint, from a historical standpoint.”
Questions arise about the breath of experience and the history of criticism of Trump
Vance, 39, has had a meteoric rise in the Republican Party. Widely known for his best-selling 2016 memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” the Ohio Republican mounted a bid for Senate in the 2022 cycle, winning the GOP nomination in a crowded primary field before defeating Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan (Ohio) in the general election.
Two years later, Trump chose him to be his running mate, putting him within striking distance of the second highest office in the country.
A seventh House Republican questioned the breadth of Vance’s resume, wondering whether he has enough experience to fill a role that is one step away from the presidency.
“I don’t know if he has the experience to take on this role,” said the lawmaker. “He’s experienced, I don’t want to say he’s not experienced and he’s not smart or that I didn’t like the book and his education… But I still rank other candidates higher because they have deeper, more tested experience.”
Vance’s past criticism of Trump has also caught the attention of some House Republicans.
Vance called Trump unfit during the 2016 campaign before changing his tune after Trump won the election, later becoming one of his most ardent supporters on Capitol Hill.
But during his period of discontent, Vance publicly called Trump “harmful” and “reprehensible” and, in a private Facebook message, referred to the then-candidate as “America’s Hitler.”
Vance defended his evolution over Trump, telling CNN in an interview in May: “I was wrong about him.” Trump echoed those sentiments, saying in a Fox News interview this week, “He didn’t know me.”
The early criticism, however, attracted some House Republicans, further fueling confusion over Trump’s vice presidential pick.
“He’s incredibly hypocritical… He called him Hitler, like, yesterday,” one of the Republicans said. “Now he is the most pro-Trump person in the world. And I just… I don’t trust him.
Another House Republican questioned why Trump would choose Vance given that history, citing the recent assassination attempt on his life at his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, which left the former president bloodied after a bullet pierced his ear.
“It’s hard for me to understand how that Republican who called Trump Hitler somehow became his vice president, especially after an assassination attempt, where I think any thinking person understands that heated rhetoric can lead to violence by people crazy,” said the Republican Party. said the lawmaker.
“That surprises me.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
