ATLANTA (AP) — Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance has used a series of appearances on Sunday news shows to disparage Democrats, tout Donald Trump’s record and plans for a second term and defend himself against criticism of past comments that have now become campaign issues.
The Ohio senator said in a series of recorded interviews that Trump’s proposal to give the president more control over U.S. monetary policy was well-founded, and he reiterated the Republican line that Minnesota vice presidential candidate Tim Walz had exaggerated his military career.
Vance, who accompanied Vice Presidents Kamala Harris and Walz on their visits to several swing states last week, was asked about abortion and his previous comments on American family life, among other things.
Some highlights of his performances:
Trump is right in his assessment of the Fed’s independence, says Vance
Trump recently suggested that presidents should “at least have a say” in the monetary policy of the US Federal Reserve, but he did not make any concrete suggestions.
Limiting the Fed’s independence from political influence in setting interest rates would be a fundamental change. Although he tried to argue that Trump did not say anything about “directly” controlling interest rates, Vance supported Trump’s basic idea.
“I think President Trump is saying something really important and profound, which is that the political leadership of this country should have more say in the monetary policy of this country,” Vance said. “I agree with him. This should fundamentally be a political decision. Whether you agree with it or not, we should let America’s elected leaders have a say in the most important decisions facing our country.”
Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan questioned the wisdom of such a sweeping change. “I think if you look at the economies of the world and see where the Fed central banks are independent and can operate freely,” he said, “they tend to do better than those where they are not.”
Mining Walz’ military file
Walz served in the Army National Guard for 24 years and was deployed to Europe once, but never to an dynamic war zone. In a 2018 video, he talked about carrying weapons “in war.” The Harris campaign said last week that Walz had slipped up.
“Scandalous behavior,” said Vance, a military veteran.
When it was pointed out that Trump had avoided Vietnam with dubious claims about bone spurs, Vance said, “Of course, many people have reasons not to serve. I criticize someone for whitewashing their record, for lying and saying, ‘I went to war.'”
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, a war veteran and close ally of Harris, said there was a rumor circulating among Republicans about “the one time” a longtime veteran made a “slip-up” when talking about his military service.
Medical abortion and Florida’s referendum
Vance was evasive when asked about his stance on an upcoming referendum in Florida that would repeal abortion restrictions passed by Republicans and ensure greater access to abortion services.
Vance spoke generally about states and reproductive rights, saying Trump “has explicitly stated that they will make this decision at the state level.”
Vance struggled to clarify Trump’s position on whether he would support federal restrictions on the medical abortion drug mifepristone.
Trump said in his debate with Biden in June that he would not block it. At his press conference in Florida last week, he gave an incoherent answer, saying, “You have to take a vote on that issue, too.” Vance suggested that Trump “may” have had difficulty hearing and understanding a reporter’s question.
Walz responded in a statement through Harris’ campaign that Trump and Vance “will ban medication abortion. … Vice President Harris and I will make sure you make your own health care decisions, because we have one rule that, regardless of whether you would make the same decision as someone else, you should not break: Just mind your own damn business.”
Vance and Buttigieg’s back and forth on family
During his 2021 Senate campaign, Vance said in an interview with Fox News that “we are de facto run by the Democrats in this country,” calling them “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are unhappy with their own lives and the choices they’ve made, and therefore want to make the rest of the country unhappy, too.”
He said they included Harris, who has two adult children, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who is gay, married and the father of twins but did not have any children at the time of Vance’s comments.
The senator said a “sarcastic remark I made three years ago” had overshadowed a earnest debate about “family-friendly” policies, and said: “I criticize people for being anti-child in their political actions.”
Vance has also proposed in the past giving people with children additional votes.
“This is not a political proposal. This is a thought experiment, right?” he said in an interview on Sunday, arguing that he was responding to others’ ideas to lower the voting age.
“Anyone who disagrees with him is against children?” Buttigieg responded on a newscast. “He seems incapable of articulating a vision for this country that will put people on the right path. … It’s all about denigration.”
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Vance appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union,” ABC’s “This Week” and CBS’s “Face the Nation.” Buttigieg was on CNN and Moynihan was on CBS.
