JD Vance had a cringeworthy moment on the world stage as he tried to call Donald Trump during a rally in Hungary—only for the president to not pick up the first time around.
In Budapest to urge voters to re-elect far-right Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the vice president appeared on stage and declared he had something of a surprise for the crowd.
“I actually had a special guest that asked that I give him a phone call,” Vance said, as he dialed a number on his mobile phone.
“Let’s see. Let’s hope he actually answers, or this is going to be very embarrassing.”
After a few awkward seconds of silence, a voice operated message came through the speakers.
“I’m sorry, the person you were trying to reach has a voicemail box that has not been set up yet,” the message said.
Vance, however, was undeterred. “Okay, try one more time,” he said.
A few more seconds of awkward silence ensued before he was finally able to connect with his boss.
“Hello, Mr. President, how are you?” a relieved VP said.
“Hi JD, could you give me a second? I’m just...uh,” Trump replied, before realizing he was on speaker phone as the audience roared.
Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance traveled to Budapest on Tuesday to campaign for Orban ahead of a closely contested national election.
The trip is the latest in a series of high-profile overseas visits by the pair, who have also traveled to France and Germany for security and AI summits, Israel during the Gaza ceasefire, Greenland during Trump’s takeover threats, and Italy for the Winter Olympics.
But Vance’s unusually direct intervention in a foreign vote has raised eyebrows, with Orban’s opponent warning the move itself amounts to foreign interference.
Orban is also a divisive figure in Europe, facing accusations of democratic backsliding, media restrictions and maintaining close ties to Russia.
However, Trump and Vance had nothing but praise for their MAGA-friendly ally.
“I’ll tell you, he’s a fantastic man,” the president told the audience at the rally through Vance’s phone and over the speakers.
“We’ve had a tremendous relationship, and he does a great job. Remember this: he didn’t allow people to storm your country and invade your country like other people have, and ruin their countries. Frankly, he’s kept your country good. He’s kept Hungarian people in your country, and he’s done a fantastic job.”
Tuesday’s rally wasn’t the first time that Vance was caught off guard on his phone that day.
At a press conference earlier, the vice president was also urged to check his phone for updates on the war as he struggled to keep up with Trump’s escalatory attacks against Iran.
The moment came as Trump, on the other side of the Atlantic, had put out a wild post threatening to wipe out Iran, a country of 95 million people whose citizens he once claimed he could help save from their tyrannical regime.
“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Trump declared on Truth Social.
Asked by a Washington Post reporter if he had any new information to believe a deal could be reached, Vance initially replied: “I don’t—unless I have a text message from Steve Witkoff”, who is Trump’s Middle East envoy.
But as he reached into his pocket to find his phone, the vice president realized in real time that things were evolving.
“I do have a message from Steve Witkoff,” he acknowledged after briefly glancing at the message.
“Wouldn’t you like to know the subject of this message?” he added awkwardly. “But no, uh, I need to read it first before I talk about it. But here’s, here’s… uh, what time is it in the United States right now?”
This was followed by another question from a Reuters reporter, who told Vance: “I do think you have to read that text because we have reports that the United States is striking some targets in Kharg Island”—the energy hub off Iran’s coast, which handles about 90% of its crude oil exports.
