Posted on 07/15/2024 2:39:19 PM PDT by NoLibZone
He once called Donald Trump “cultural heroin” and said he feared he could be “America’s Hitler.” But over an eight-year transformation, the Ohio senator became one of his most ardent supporters.
Senator J.D. Vance, who joined former President Donald J. Trump’s 2024 ticket on Monday, once described his new running mate as a kind of “cultural heroin” — and privately feared that he could be “America’s Hitler.”
That was nearly a decade ago, when Mr. Trump’s political ascent coincided with Mr. Vance’s rise as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” his memoir of growing up poor in rural Kentucky and Ohio. Mr. Vance was frequently interviewed for his views on the white working-class communities described in his book, full of the types of voters drawn to Mr. Trump’s “Make America Great Again” pitch, and to his insistence that he alone could save a nation in decline.
In a 2016 article in The Atlantic, “Opioid of the Masses,” Mr. Vance wrote: “During this election season, it appears that many Americans have reached for a new pain reliever.” He went on: “It enters minds, not through lungs or veins, but through eyes and ears, and its name is Donald Trump.” But, he argued, Mr. Trump was not the solution.
Times change.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Another whack PDJT hire ?
Hopefully he’s not JD Pence.
Probably the best FR post today.
Not sure who the anti-Vance people wanted, maybe Rubio?
I don’t mind the people Trump wins over, I mind those who stand behind him so they can stab him in the back. I’m glad JD is the pick.
I think this is what Trump meant by UNITY..bringing in someone who once hated his guts but got to know the real Trump and changed his mind. Heck in 2015 Trump was not my first choice, but the more I heard from him the more I liked the message and I have been team maga ever since
Here’s Vance on his turnaround. Before I had my Come to MAGA Moment, I was a neocon stooge. People wisen up.
https://x.com/catturd2/status/1812953683073900877?s=46&t=oXM3QUNDayEotvdo1W-zQA
I can understand being skeptical of Trump when he first ran for President but JD showed a lack of critical thinking when he wrote that “Trump is Hitler” stuff but I think he honestly has turned around to being a Trump Fan. Time will tell.
I was no fan of Trump either, until he got elected and actually started doing things that benefited the country. He didn’t have a record to run on back then, but he’s got one now, and it’s a good one.
I’m not anti Vance.
I never realized he was an anti trumper.
The msm will be using his words against him.
I had been skeptical of Trump because he donated to Ted Kennedy and didn’t convince me that he was Truly Pro-Life. Also, his sound instincts did not seem to have an underlying moral philosophy. He won me over through his.governance. Anything said byVance in 2016 could be superseded by seeing Trump in action.
Trump knew every single word this man said and chose him anyway..Trump is basically saying “This man hated my guts, said horrible things about me..the same kind of horrible things that the left has said that almost got me executed on live TV a few days ago, but people change, hearts change”
Think about how Rosie O’Donnell and Trump trash talk each other a lot.
Then Rosie shows up at one of his rallies earlier this year.
Maybe it’s a cultural thing in New York, IDK.
Maybe trash talk doesn’t bother Trump so much.
“I’m not anti Vance.”
I didn’t claim that...just a general comment on the article that you posted.
He wrote a book, a good one, that is praised over several pages by every freaking left wing media source out there. I read it and it’s a typical story of Appalachian poverty. Was a best seller made into a Netflix film.
My favorite story in it occurs when his grandmother tells his grandfather not to come home drunk again. So he promptly does and passes out on the couch. Grandma pours gasoline on him and sets him ablaze, leaving Vance’s sister to put the fire out.
He has become a solid conservative and was one of Trump’s number one picks for the senate two years ago.
The libs now hate his guts. Tucker just gave an interview and said, “This guy has all the right enemies.”
Not another Pence. J.D. learned, as many voters did, that Trump is the real deal.
Handled right, his awakening can influence many other voters. He should state that loud and clear as many times as he can.
St Thomas was also a doubter.
And Reagan and Trump used to be Democrats.
The heart of Christianity is forgiveness and change.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.