President Donald Trump has shared an image of JD Vance’s new baby before the vice president or his wife.
On Truth Social, the doting president, 80, hailed the arrival of “perfect” Alec Neel Vance, who was born on Sunday morning. Alec is the fourth in the Vance brood, following Ewan, 9, Vivek, 6, and 4-year-old Mirabel.
The picture shared by Trump on Monday morning shows Mirabel watching on as Vivek cradles the youngster. “Congratulations! A perfect baby boy for the wonderful Vance family,” the president, a father of five and grandfather to 11, posted.
Neither Vance nor his wife, Usha, has shared a picture of the baby yet. They announced his birth in a joint statement on Sunday, sans photograph.
“Usha and the baby are happy and healthy, and our kids are overjoyed to meet their little brother,” the vice president wrote on X. Usha retweeted his post.
Vance has claimed that the assassination of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk is the reason he and the first lady decided to have a fourth child.
Vance made the revelation in an excerpt from his forthcoming book, Communion, that was obtained by the Wall Street Journal, in which he referred to 31-year-old Kirk as his “best friend” in politics.
“As my wife held Charlie Kirk’s widow on the first day of her terrible sorrow, Erika told Usha between sobs that she regretted having only two kids with Charlie,” Vance wrote.
“For years, I had asked Usha to have another baby, and for years she had told me she was done—especially now that public service had elevated us into the national spotlight. But something changed for Usha, and not long after we buried my friend, she became pregnant with our fourth child, a boy.”
Kirk was shot dead during a TPUSA event in September.
The Trump post on Truth Social comes amid a succession battle between Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Trump has toyed with naming both men as his successor as head of the Republican Party and has privately canvassed aides on who they think has what it takes to lead the GOP ticket.
Seasoned diplomat Rubio has been front and center of late, owing to his deep involvement with negotiations relating to the Iran war. Vance, too, has been involved in talks, but has attracted criticism for plugging his new book at a time when many think he could roll up his sleeves.
Politico’s Playbook reported on Monday that two administration officials said there has been rampant gossip about who might get the nod. The gossiper in chief, they say, is Trump himself, though the White House denies any chatter. The usually verbose White House Communications Director Steven Cheung called any suggestion “false” in an unusually short and level-headed statement.
“The insinuation that chatter is heating up about 2028 is completely false,” he said. “There will be more than enough time to talk about 2028, but it’s not a topic of conversation yet.”
The prevailing assessment from onlookers, though, is that Vance is doing well on the interview circuit, while Rubio is owning the classic diplomacy.
The officials who spoke to Politico said there is no clear favorite, and that Trump is constantly asking “everyone and anyone” whom they favor.
The White House and the vice president’s office have been asked to comment on Trump sharing the picture of the newest Vance, rather than his own parents.
