Lily Mae Lazarus
Sat, July 27, 2024
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Usha Vance expressed “revulsion” at former president Donald Trump and found the Jan. 6 insurrection “deeply disturbing,” her one-time friends have revealed.
The potential second lady’s alleged distaste for her husband’s running mate began when Trump was elected in 2016 and was especially clear after Trump’s supporters attacked the Capitol in a bid to overturn his defeat, the Washington Post reported.
“Usha found the incursion on the Capitol and Trump’s role in it to be deeply disturbing,” the friend recalled. “She was generally appalled by Trump, from the moment of his first election.”
Usha Vance has been at the center of speculation about her political beliefs, having been a registered Democrat in the past but voting in Republican primaries in Ohio, where she now lives with her husband. The Post reported that since attending Yale Law School, where she met her husband, the attorney has been tight-lipped with her political beliefs.
But following her husband’s ascension to the near-top of the Republican party, those close to Vance have revealed her former views.
Friends described seeing Vance sitting with Trump and speaking at the Republican National Convention as “surreal,” watching the first generation Indian-American attorney address a predominantly white crowd as her husband became the GOP vice presidential pick.
At the RNC, Usha Vance found herself on stage with a man she had told her friends she was revolted by, they have disclosed to the Washington Post.
Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters
“Was I surprised to see her there to support a man who seems to be building political power by punching down at trans folks and immigrants? Yeah, that part caught me off guard,” a Yale classmate of hers told the Washington Post.
Vance’s change in tone regarding the former president reflects that of her spouse, who once compared Trump to “Hitler.” Prior to her husband appearing on a Republican ticket in 2022, she registered to vote as a Democrat at least twice and was registered with the party until 2014.
And while she worked for two conservative judges, her husband said Vance had “no ideological chops” after she interviewed with Justice Elena Kagan, a Democratic appointee and the late Antonin Scalia, a conservative icon.
Vance instead took a job working for Chief Justice John Roberts, before entering private practice.
In a statement provided by Vance’s campaign, Jai Chabria, a strategist for his Ohio Senate campaign and a “longtime family friend,” said, “As has been well documented, JD became a supporter of President Trump over time. Usha has had a similar shift in views and fully supports Donald Trump and her husband and will do whatever she can to ensure their victory this November.”
JD Vance acknowledges white supremacist attacks against wife Usha
BEING HINDUTVA MAKES HER MORE ARYAN THAN THEM
Eden Teshome
Fri, July 26, 2024 at 2:06 p.m. MDT·2 min read
Vice presidential hopeful Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) acknowledged the white supremacist attacks against his wife, Usha Vance, who is a child of Indian immigrants.
“Look, I love my wife so much. I love her because she’s who she is,” he told host Megyn Kelly on her show Friday. “Obviously, she’s not a white person, and we’ve been accused, attacked by some white supremacists over that. But I just, I love Usha.”
Usha Vance has faced a slew of far-right attacks targeting her Indian heritage following her husband’s nomination to the Republican ticket.
“Who is this guy, really? Do we really expect that the guy who has an Indian wife and named their kid Vivek is going to support white identity?” prominent white supremacist Nick Fuentes said of Vance after former President Trump announced his running mate.
Fuentes was invited to Mar-a-Lago by Trump in November 2022, stirring a firestorm of criticism.
Vance has not publicly condemned the attacks, and in his comments Friday he was more critical of liberal commentators who have blasted his past comments about traditional family and gender roles, calling the criticism “disgusting.”
“She’s such a good mom,” Vance added of his wife. “She’s such a brilliant lawyer, and I’m so proud of her. But yes, her experience has given me some perspective on the way in which it’s really hard for working families in this country.”
Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition working to fight injustice against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, said it observed a flood of racist comments after Usha Vance stepped into the spotlight at the Republican National Convention.
“We are seeing a dangerous pattern of political leaders, conservative commentators, and far-right extremists blatantly targeting South Asians,” the group told Politico.
Vice President Harris, who is half Indian, has also faced racially charged questions about her electability as she has emerged as the likely Democratic candidate against Trump.
“As bigoted attacks against Usha Vance and Vice President Harris grow — including efforts to pit them against each other — it’s clear that the political leaders and others fueling this hate are completely disregarding the safety and wellbeing of Asian American and immigrant communities,” Stop AAPI Hate said.
Vance on Friday also responded to public anger over past comments he made degrading Harris for being “childless.” During the interview, he lauded his own wife for continuing her career with children.
“My own wife is a working mother. You hear leftists say JD wants to keep women in the home. My own wife, I’ve supported her career for my entire life,” he said. “This is about criticizing the Democratic Party for becoming antifamily and antichild.”
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
No comments:
Post a Comment