Republican National Convention Vice Presidential Acceptance Speech
Emphasizes Family and Workers Mentioning Growth Process
Also Signals Tough Policy: "No Free Ride for Allies"
"As always, the American ruling class wrote a blank check, and the local communities we belong to paid the price. I will be a vice president who does not forget where I come from."
J.D. Vance, a 'dirt spoon politician' and federal senator nominated as former U.S. President Donald Trump's running mate, officially accepted the vice presidential nomination on the 17th (local time) at the Republican National Convention podium for the first time in his life. He disparaged President Biden as a 'career politician' and took on the role of a sniper, while also announcing a tough policy stance, saying "No more free rides for allies."
According to CNN's live broadcast, on the third day of the Republican National Convention, Vance delivered his vice presidential acceptance speech at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he made these remarks.
Vance's acceptance speech focused on his upbringing and, as expected, aimed to target the labor vote in the Rust Belt swing states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Born into a low-income family in Ohio's Rust Belt, he said, "The working class knows that groceries, gas, energy, and housing were cheaper during the Trump administration," strongly criticizing the Biden administration's policies for harming small towns and local communities like his hometown.
In particular, Vance blamed the Democrats and President Biden for all the hardships he experienced in childhood, including poverty, family breakdown, his mother's drug addiction, unemployment, and community collapse. His growth story, overcoming the vicious cycle of poverty and family breakdown despite being born into a low-income family, graduating from Yale University, and becoming a lawyer, entrepreneur, and politician, is also known through his autobiography, Hillbilly Elegy.
He claimed, "When I was in fourth grade, Joe Biden, a career politician, supported the bad trade agreement called NAFTA and sent countless good jobs to Mexico." He also mentioned, "President Biden supported the disastrous Iraq invasion, outsourced jobs from states like Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, and sent our children to war zones." Despite George Bush, the president at the time, being a Republican, Vance targeted politician Biden.
Vance also emphasized that many administrations before former President Trump had failed. He raised his voice, saying that due to the ruling class's wrong choices, local communities have paid the price: "From Iraq to Afghanistan, from the financial crisis to the Great Depression, from open borders to wage stagnation, those who govern this country have failed again and again." He added, "Former President Trump represents America's last hope to restore what, once lost, may never be found again."
Along with this, Vance defined former President Trump's vision as 'America First' for workers. He said, "We will rebuild factories and get people working to make real products for American families with American workers' hands," adding, "We will protect American workers' wages and prevent China from building its middle class through American citizens."
Regarding foreign policy, he also promised, "Allies will share the burden for world peace," warning, "No more free rides." In his closing remarks, he listed Rust Belt swing states such as Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, saying, "To all forgotten communities, every corner of our country, I promise I will be a vice president who does not forget where I come from."
Attending the convention for the first time ever, Vance appeared on stage introduced by his wife, Usha Chilukuri Vance. He first mentioned the shooting incident involving former President Trump on the 13th, saying, "Our night tonight could have been very different. It could have been a day of grief and mourning, not celebration." He continued, "Before running for president, he (Trump) was one of the most successful businessmen in the world and had everything anyone could want in life," praising Trump by saying, "Yet he chose to endure abuse, slander, and persecution, not the easy path, because he loves this country."
On the other hand, immediately after Vance's vice presidential acceptance speech, the Biden campaign released a statement criticizing him. The Biden camp said, "Tonight, J.D. Vance, the poster boy of 'Project 2025,' took the stage," and countered, "If he stays there, the ones who will suffer are working families and the middle class." They also described Vance as the human face of Project 2025, which prioritizes extremism and the ultra-wealthy over democracy, criticizing, "Vance is unprepared, unqualified, and will do whatever former President Trump demands."
The third day of the convention, themed 'Make America Strong Once Again,' focused on foreign policy, border, and security issues. Besides Vance, speakers included former White House Director Peter Navarro, known as 'Trump's economic strategist,' Texas Governor Greg Abbott, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, former President Trump's son Donald Trump Jr., and his teenage daughter. Former President Trump appeared at the venue in the latter part of the convention with a bandage on his ear. He is scheduled to deliver his acceptance speech on the final day, the 18th.
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