Vice President JD Vance was branded a hypocrite after saying America had become “dirtier and poorer,” remarks critics interpreted as a dig at immigrants and people of color—even as he’s married to an Indian woman who is the mother of his four children.
Michigan Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar hit back Friday, saying Vance’s comments are “all the proof you need that the Vice President is a shameless hack who believes in nothing and just says whatever he thinks is in the best interest of his political career.”
Vance railed during the last night of the GOP midterm convention on Thursday that the U.S. was becoming “poorer” and “dirtier” before Donald Trump’s election to a second term, and that Republicans were tired of being attacked for saying so.
“We were tired of being called racists for noticing that our country was becoming dirtier,” he emphasized.
Vance notoriously claimed two years ago that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were abducting and eating people’s pets. Officials said there wasn’t a single verified report to back up the claim. “They’re eating the dogs. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” Trump said in a campaign speech, repeating the lie.
The vice president’s wife, Usha Vance, was born in San Diego, California, on January 6, 1986, to parents who moved to the U.S. from India in the late 1970s, making her a U.S. citizen by birth—a practice Trump is battling to end. Her parents’ citizenship status at the time of her birth has not been verified, according to Reuters.
Trump said his executive order aiming at ending birthright citizenship would not apply to Vance’s wife because her birth predates the date of the order.
One of many critics on X responded to Vance’s speech and his apparent shock at being called “racist,” noting: “You’re being called racist because you keep saying and doing racist things.” Another wrote: “Ummm, does he really think he’s beating the racist accusation here? It’s not a dog whistle. It’s a bullhorn.” Another user was more generous, saying that Vance really may not be a racist after all—just an “evil opportunist” who’s bashing people to climb a political ladder.
Several noted that the poorest states in the U.S. are Republican, and it’s unclear how that’s the fault of “dirtier and poorer” people.
