From Trump critic to running mate: The unexpected journey of JD Vance
A former Marine and best-selling author who once opposed Trump now stands as his VP pick. His path from Ohio steel town to possible White House shows how political views can shift in modern-day America
About eight years ago JD Vance wrote a book that changed his life; now heʼs looking at an even bigger change. His book about growing up poor in Ohio made him famous but nobody expected what happened next
In the early days Vance wasnt a fan of Donald Trump at all - in fact he really didnt like him:
Iʼm a never Trump guy
The story of these two men is quite different: while Trump grew up rich in New-York Vance had a tough childhood in a steel town with a mom who struggled with drugs. After joining Marines and going to Yale Law School‚ he became successful in business (which is pretty rare for someone with his background)
By mid-2023 Vance changed his mind about Trump completely; his friend says it happened because media was too harsh on the ex-president. At the GOP meeting in Milwaukee last summer Trump picked him as running-mate - partly because Donald Trump Jr really likes him
- He questions help to Ukraine
- He talks about trans-kids issues
- He supports Trumpʼs view on 2020 election
- He changed his ideas about abortion
Vance now lives with his wife Usha (who used to be a Democrat) and their three kids. He made money working with tech-guy Peter Thiel but left that world behind. Now at 40 years-old he might become one of Americas youngest vice-presidents ever - thats quite a jump for someone who grew up poor in the rust-belt
His friends say hes good at talking both to working-class people and rich college grads; which makes him perfect for this job. Trumpʼs team thinks they can win with this mix: a new-york businessman and a guy who understands middle-America
