Usha Vance, the wife of Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance, defended her husband鈥檚 and downplayed his labelling of some Democratic politicians as 鈥渃hildless cat ladies,鈥 calling it a 鈥渜uip.鈥
In a sit-down interview with Fox News that aired Monday, Usha Vance, a trial lawyer, argued her husband鈥檚 past comments, which have received renewed scrutiny since he joined former president Donald Trump鈥檚 presidential ticket, were in service of an argument about the challenges facing parents and the role government plays in parents鈥 lives.
鈥淭he reality is, JD made a quote 鈥 I mean, he made a quip, and he made a quip in service of making a point that he wanted to make that was substantive,鈥 she said. 鈥淎nd I just wish sometimes that people would talk about those things and that we would spend a lot less time just sort of going through this three-word phrase or that three-word phrase.鈥
鈥淲hat he was really saying is that it can be really hard to be a parent in this country, and sometimes our policies are designed in a way that make it even harder,鈥 she continued.
The first solo interview from Usha Vance comes alongside fresh urgency for the Republican senator to around his candidacy. Trump allies have been eager to see Usha Vance defend her husband and the Republican ticket publicly as the campaign continues its defence of different resurfaced clips of JD Vance.
His past remarks have attracted ire from celebrity icons and Taylor Swift supporters but also from conservative outlets. The Wall Street Journal editorial board eviscerated Vance鈥檚 comments as the 鈥渟ort of smart-aleck crack that gets laughs in certain right-wing male precincts.鈥 Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro wondered out loud to his sizable audience if Trump was having doubts about his pick.
In her interview with Fox, Usha Vance said she believes her husband 鈥渨ould never鈥 intend to offend people who are struggling to have children while acknowledging that some people choose not to start families for 鈥渧ery good鈥 reasons.
鈥淛D, absolutely at the time and today, would never, ever, ever want to say something to hurt someone who was trying to have a family, who really was struggling with that,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 also understand there are a lot of other reasons why people may choose not to have families, and many of those reasons are very good.鈥
Usha Vance insisted that her husband, who repeatedly made disparaging comments about childless adults in interviews, campaign appearances and fundraising emails while targeting Democratic officials, was attempting to have 鈥渁 real conversation鈥 about how government can help parents raise their children.
A CNN KFile review of multiple similar remarks from JD Vance underscores how the 鈥渃hildless cat ladies鈥 comment was part of a broader pattern of him pressing the culture war by, in part, singling out Democratic leaders for not having children.
In November 2020, for example, JD Vance said on a conservative podcast that childless Americans, especially those in the country鈥檚 鈥渓eadership class,鈥 were 鈥渕ore sociopathic鈥 than those with children and made the country 鈥渓ess mentally stable.鈥 Vance added that the 鈥渕ost deranged鈥 and 鈥渕ost psychotic鈥 commentators on Twitter 鈥 now known as X - were typically childless.
鈥淟et鈥檚 try to look at the real conversation that he鈥檚 trying to have,鈥 Usha Vance said, 鈥渁nd engage with it and understand for those of us who do have families, for the many of us who want to have families, and for whom it鈥檚 really hard, what can we do to make it better.鈥
Vance says she鈥檚 come to 鈥榰nderstand鈥 Trump
Usha Vance also pushed back on reports that both she and her husband privately condemned Trump before JD Vance joined Trump on the Republican ticket.
In the interview, Vance detailing her outrage towards Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, but said that she has grown to 鈥渦nderstand鈥 Trump since then.
鈥淲ell, you know, I鈥檝e had several years since then to kind of understand what it is that he is out to do,鈥 Vance said of Trump. 鈥淚f I didn鈥檛 feel that the ticket, you know, the Trump-Vance ticket was able to do some real good for the country, then I wouldn鈥檛 be here supporting him and JD wouldn鈥檛 have done this.鈥
Vance said that she and her husband sometimes disagree about political issues, acknowledging 鈥渨e鈥檙e two different people,鈥 but said she believes in the 鈥渋ntention鈥 behind his political career.
鈥淲e have lots of different backgrounds and interests and things like that. So we come to different conclusions all the time. But that鈥檚 part of the fun of being married,鈥 she said. 鈥淲hat I never doubt about JD, even when I disagree about this or that, is his intention, what it is that he really wants to do.鈥
Vance also defended her husband鈥檚 private exchanges with a law school friend in which he disparaged Trump and said 鈥淚 hate the police.鈥 Vance denied her husband hates the police and said her husband鈥檚 friend sharing their personal correspondence publicly was 鈥渉urtful.鈥
鈥淛D certainly does not hate the police. I think that is clear through his career, and before,鈥 she said. 鈥淢aybe he had a negative interaction once or twice and made a, you know, remark like that. I don鈥檛 know. But since then, and always as long as I鈥檝e known him, he鈥檚 had a great deal of respect for them and everything they do to keep us safe.鈥
鈥淲e鈥檝e both been in a position of having people speculate about us a lot and make 鈥 draw a lot of conclusions based on sometimes information that isn鈥檛 even true,鈥 she said of the New York Times report. 鈥淎nd I don鈥檛 want to do the same about other people.鈥
