Vance’s Hot Take on Political Persecution Comes Back to Haunt Him
The vice president has spoken before about “weaponization of the IRS.”
Comments made by up-and-coming JD Vance slamming Joe Biden’s policies are being dragged back into the spotlight as the Trump administration develops its own priorities.
The then-Sen. JD Vance claimed in 2023 that the Biden-era Internal Revenue Service targeted conservatives, but now his message looks eerily on-script with the Trump administration’s current playbook.
During an appearance on Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle in November 2023, the fresh-faced Ohio Senator warned about what he called the “weaponization of the IRS.”
He said, “The IRS is basically trying to send a signal that if you are doing effective work on behalf of the conservative movement, you gotta have your head on a swivel, you gotta be looking over your shoulder to make sure the IRS isn’t going to come after you.”
Vance spoke about the issue with Laura Ingraham in November, 2023.
Fox News
He went further, calling such tactics “fundamentally an assault on people’s First Amendment rights,” and adding that, “It’s another example of using the government to target political opponents as opposed to effectively administering the laws of the country.”
Vance, 41, labeled the situation “dangerous” and said, “We have to call it out.” He argued the problem transcended partisan politics, stating, “This is not about left vs right, this is about whether we have a functioning constitutional government in this country. If the IRS can go after you because of what you think or what you believe or what you do, we no longer live in a free country.”
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Those comments are now circulating widely online as the Trump administration implements changes that appear to mirror exactly what Vance warned against.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said his department is trying to dismantle networks funding radical-left violence, despite not presenting any evidence that those networks actually exist.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, the IRS Criminal Investigative unit is undergoing an overhaul, including installing Trump allies in leadership roles and weakening the role of IRS lawyers assisting agents.
Gary Shapley, an adviser to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, is reportedly planning to replace the division’s long-time chief, Guy Ficco, and has compiled a list of investigation targets that includes Democratic donor George Soros and his affiliated organizations.
The administration claims the goal is to crack down on “left-wing violence.” Critics point out that Trump has previously said Soros “should be in jail,” and suggested on social media that Soros and his son Alex should face federal charges under the RICO Act.
A senior Justice Department official has also reportedly urged several U.S. attorneys’ offices to investigate Soros’s Open Society Foundations.
Vance’s prior warnings about IRS overreach appear pointedly relevant. In 2023, he said, “No Democrat is willing to stand up and say, ‘enough is enough.’”
The comments are being framed online as an example of political hypocrisy, as Vance has not publicly criticized the current administration’s IRS actions, instead, he has boasted of them.
Speaking on The Charlie Kirk Show on Wednesday, he said, “We have to train the investigatory and law enforcement powers of the government to focus on’ so-called left-wing political violence.
This is not the first high-profile Vance flip-flop. In the past, he acknowledged the existence of a climate problem, even investing in green technology ventures. However, as he aligned more closely with Trumpism, his stance changed. By 2024, he was calling it “weird science.”
Vance has also shifted his position on abortion, which eventually conveniently lined up with his counterpart on the 2024 ticket, Donald Trump. But, he told the Daily Beast in 2022 that he was “pro-choice.”
“My mamaw, until very late in life, she was pro-choice,” Vance said. He added that his views were “absolutely” shaped by his “mamaw’s.”
However, Vance has also suggested that “two wrongs don’t make a right” when it comes to rape and incest survivors seeking abortions.
Representatives for Vance have been asked to comment.
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