Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, recounted during a winding, often partisan conversation on Joe Rogan’s podcast how he grabbed his children and loaded his guns after watching an assassination attempt he initially thought killed former President Donald Trump, with the interview flashing the politics and life of the vice presidential pick.
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 16: Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) questions former executives of failed banks during a ... [+]
Vance said on the episode he went into “fight or flight” mode at a mini-golf course in Cincinnati after seeing the shooter attempt to assassinate Trump in July, stating he grabbed his children and rushed home to “load all” his guns and “stand like a sentry at his front door.”
Vance added that his immediate response was anger, saying he was “so pissed” and that he thought Trump had been killed because of how he fell to the ground.
The July 13 assassination attempt came two days before Vance was chosen as Trump’s VP pick; Vance said the two had met to discuss the appointment the same day of the Butler rally with Trump almost bringing Vance along to announce, Vance said on the podcast.
Vance and Rogan also discussed myriad theories regarding the assassination attempt, alleging that there were “fishy” unanswered questions regarding the perpetrator and his life, with Vance saying, “I hope we win and then get to the bottom of it because I think somebody clearly screwed up.” Vance revealed on the podcast he had communicated with Trump for some time about the vice presidential position and whether he would be the right fit, saying he didn’t know he would be chosen at the time. In the interview, Vance also brings up that his phone was allegedly hacked by Chinese cybercriminals with a prominent organization called “Salt Typhoon.” He said they didn’t get anything besides “some offensive memes” and texts to his wife. He added that he’s careful about using Signal and encrypted messaging software. “The way that they hacked our phones is they used the backdoor telecom infrastructure that had been developed in the wake of the Patriot Act,” he said.
Vance’s interview is the latest push from the Trump campaign to reach the younger male audience behind podcasters like Rogan, the face of the most-listened-to podcast in the U.S. The episode comes less than a week after Rogan released a casual, lengthy interview with Trump that has been viewed nearly 42 million times on YouTube—one of his highest-viewed episodes. Vance has followed Trump’s path and participated in many of the same podcasts, such as the “Full Send Podcast.” Trump’s campaign is pursuing these young male voters as they’ve historically been less inclined to vote and are viewed as a potential boost against Vice President Kamala Harris’ strength among women. Vance sat for nearly three hours in the Austin, Texas-based studio, talking about controversial conspiracy theories about the pharmaceutical industry, his beliefs on family ideals, his friendship with billionaire Elon Musk and a recurring theory from Rogan that media platforms suppress speech and ideas.
“One of the big things that me and President Trump confront all the time is the accusation that we're somehow like in bed with Russia, which is like the dumbest thing in the world to me, I don't really care about Russia; I just don't think we should have a nuclear war,” Vance said on the podcast.
More than 1.5 million. That’s how many views the video of the Vance interview received in roughly the first three hours after it posted.