Usha Vance took a stab at defending JD Vance’s “childless cat ladies” remark on Monday, saying in an interview that her husband—who has also said people without kids are more likely to be mentally unstable sociopaths—would never want to hurt people trying to have kids. The problem’s just the heathens who actively choose not to have them, you see!
Speaking to Fox News’ Ainsley Earhardt for a prerecorded interview that aired this morning, the would-be second lady insisted the vice presidential candidate “would never ever, ever, want to say something to hurt someone who was trying to have a family.” She then claimed that if people would take a moment to try to “understand…the context” of her husband’s comment and focus less on the “three-word phrase,” they would understand that he was simply arguing 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.”
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
In fact, that’s not actually what one takes away from the Ohio senator’s conversation with Tucker Carlson in 2021, during which he said, “We’re effectively run in this country…by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made, and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too.” Vance then name-checked Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as being among the “childless” people “we’ve turned our country over to...who don’t really have a direct stake in it.” As Buttigieg himself argued last week, Vance’s comments were not only insulting but patently absurd, with the transportation secretary telling Jon Stewart: “When I was deployed to Afghanistan, I didn’t have kids back then, but I will tell you…my commitment to this country felt pretty physical.”
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Vance’s interview with Carlson is far from the only time he has denigrated people for not having kids. In fact, he appears to be absolutely obsessed with the topic; on at least one other occasion, he claimed that child-free Americans were “more sociopathic” than those with kids, adding that they made the US “less mentally stable.”
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Donald Trump attempted to do damage control last week over his running mate’s remarks, boldly claiming to Fox News that rather than being offended by what Vance said, women without children “understand” what he was getting at and appreciate where he was coming from.
If you would like to receive the Levin Report in your inbox daily, click here to subscribe.
Trump praises Putin for releasing Americans he unjustly imprisoned
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Always with the crowd sizes
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Elsewhere!
Harris running mate selection expected in next 48 hours
The Washington Post • Read More
Harris vs. Trump Polls: Kamala’s Gains Are Now a Trend, Not Just a Bounce
New York • Read More
On Biden’s Exit, Pelosi Says She Was Driven by Need to Defeat Trump
NYT • Read More
The Woman Who Engineered Donald Trump’s Rise From the Ashes of 2020
Vanity Fair • Read More
Secretaries of state urge Musk to fix AI chatbot spreading false election info
The Washington Post • Read More
Justice Thomas Failed to Reveal More Private Flights, Senator Says
NYT • Read More
With voting under attack, Arizona schools don’t want to be polling locations
The Washington Post • Read More
Gretchen Whitmer has taken on Trump. Here’s her advice for Kamala Harris.
The Washington Post • Read More
Trump anointed Vance as MAGA crown prince—but DeSantis isn’t going away
Politico • Read More
Chicken wings advertised as “boneless” can have bones, Ohio Supreme Court decides
AP • Read More
More Great Stories From Vanity Fair
October Cover Star Selena Gomez Opens Up: “I Unfortunately Can’t Carry My Own Children”
2024 Presidential Debate Recap: Highlights From the Harris-Trump Showdown
Taylor Swift, “Childless Cat Lady,” Endorses Kamala Harris
Behind the Catholic Right’s Celebrity-Conversion Industrial Complex
Is This the End of Selling Sunset as We Know It?
The 20 Best Fall Movies to Cozy Up With This Season
“Are You Saying No to Elon Musk?”: Scenes From the Twitter Buyout
Inside the Hive Breaks Down the Presidential Debate, the GOP’s Extreme Policies, and More
From the Archive: Meet the Dynamite Socialite Princess TNT of Bavaria