Vice President JD Vance made a very visible walk to the West Wing on Thursday and entered through its front door—a break from his usual route as he fends off rumors of a rift between him and the president.
Vance’s walk to work in front of news cameras comes as the 41-year-old is being pressed on his stance on war with Iran, which he insists he still supports despite having long advocated against U.S. intervention in the Middle East.
Vance’s new route to the West Wing was noted by the Spectrum News reporter Taylor Popielarz, who pointed out that Vance “usually uses the side entrance away from the press.”
Photos show Vance waving to photographers as he walked with an AirPod in his ear.
Vance entered the West Wing around the same time as Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Photos show that both men, who have offices in the West Wing, took the same route past the White House press corps.
Rubio and Vance’s appearance at the White House comes as a U.S. ceasefire with Iran remains in limbo.
Israel’s defense minister said Thursday that the country is waiting for the “green light” from Washington to resume strikes on Iran. Vance’s scheduled trip to meet with an Iranian delegation in Pakistan was postponed indefinitely earlier this week.
Vance’s office declined to comment on his stroll in front of cameras.
The VP vocally criticized past U.S. intervention in the Middle East while in the Senate. He wrote in 2023, “Twenty years ago, we invaded Iraq. The war killed many innocent Iraqis and Americans. It destroyed the oldest Christian populations in the world. It cost over $1 trillion and turned Iraq into a satellite of Iran. It was an unforced disaster, and I pray that we learn its lessons.”
Vance says things are different this time around because Trump is running the show.
Cornered on his position on March 16, Vance said from the Oval Office that “one big difference” between now and then was that “we have a smart president, whereas in the past we’ve had dumb presidents.”
“I trust President Trump to get the job done, to do a good job for the American people, and to make sure the mistakes of the past aren’t repeated,” he continued.
While Vance has backed Trump’s war with Iran this spring, some allies feel he has not done so as vehemently as they would have liked him to, Politico reported last month.
Vance was one of three officials leading peace talks with Iran in Islamabad, Pakistan. He was packed and ready to return and resume talks on Tuesday, but the trip was paused after Iran said it would send only a delegation to talks if a blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz was lifted.
A two-week ceasefire with Iran was set to expire on Wednesday night, but Trump announced before it lapsed that the ceasefire was now “indefinite.”
