Michiganders react to Sen. JD Vance becoming Trump's VP pick

DETROIT – Michigan Republicans were quick Monday afternoon to shower praise on the selection of U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio as former President Donald Trump's running mate in this year's election .

"Vice President JD Vance! A son of the Midwest, he will be great for Michigan and help to carry Michigan for the Trump Vance ticket in November!" Michigan Republican Party Chairman Pete Hoekstra said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

"Sen. J.D. Vance will be a tremendous vice president and President Trump’s selection of him as his running mate is another sign that he is focused on helping middle class Americans achieve the American Dream," said former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, who has Trump's endorsement to become the Republican nominee for Michigan's open U.S. Senate seat.

Pointing to Vance’s humble beginnings in southern Ohio, recalled in the 2016 book "Hillbilly Elegy," a bestselling memoir by Vance, Rogers said the vice presidential pick "understands firsthand what the high cost of groceries, gas, and rent do to a struggling working family." Vance, who served as a Marine and earned a law school degree from Yale before winning a U.S. Senate seat two years ago, is 39 years old.

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In announcing his selection on the Truth Social platform on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Trump said Vance "will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American workers and farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond." Vance becomes the third Republican vice presidential nominee in the last four elections to represent the Midwest, following then-U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin in 2012 and former Vice President Mike Pence of Indiana in 2016 and 2020.

Other Michigan Republicans joined in praising Vance's selection, including U.S. Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Watersmeet, who said, "J.D. is a fellow U.S. Marine and has been a solid fighter in the Senate since taking office. ... Our party is unified and we are ready to win big in November."

U.S. Rep. John James, R-Shelby Township, who was scheduled to speak at the convention Monday evening, said he was "thrilled at the news." "My friend J.D. is a strong conservative who will fight with President Trump to address the issues that have Michiganders worse off under Joe Biden," James said.

"Congrats to J.D. Vance on joining the Trump ticket, " U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Tipton, added on X. "J.D. is a fighter, veteran, and understands the concerns of Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin. United, we’re going to Make America Great Once Again!"

Democrats immediately criticized the choice, with Biden-Harris 2024 Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon claiming Trump selected Vance because he will "bend over backwards to enable Trump and his extreme MAGA (Make America Great Again) agenda, even if it means breaking the law and no matter the harm to the American people" and saying he supports sweeping conservative changes to the federal bureaucracy and a national abortion ban. Vance, however, has said in the last year that Republicans must "accept that people do not want blanket abortion bans." He has also said he supports access to abortion drugs.

“Trump has only ever surrounded himself with extremists who agree with his far-right agenda, and J.D. Vance is certainly no different,” said Michigan Democratic Party Chairwoman Lavora Barnes. “As the junior senator from Ohio, Vance has shown that he doesn’t care about anything other than pushing rhetoric and policies to take full control of our bodies, economy and democracy. At the end of the day, Trump choosing Vance as his running mate underscores how important it is that we reelect President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.”

USA TODAY said Vance "personifies what's known as the New Right," which rejects some traditional Republican viewpoints such as completely free markets. Like Trump, who he once criticized, he has taken populist positions, embracing tariffs on some imports and calling for the U.S. to withdraw from any involvement in certain foreign conflicts, including the war between Russia and Ukraine. Vance has also rejected cuts to Social Security.

Vance, who turns 40 early next month, also was criticized by some for his immediate reaction to the attempted assassination of Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, when he blamed it on Biden. "Today is not just some isolated incident," Vance wrote on X. "The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led directly to President Trump's attempted assassination."

Contact Todd Spangler: tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@tsspangler.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michiganders react to Sen. JD Vance becoming Trump's VP pick