Sunny Hostin is questioning J.D. Vance‘s roots, suggesting on this morning’s episode of The View that he’s not the same “hillbilly” and “everyday man” he claims to be.
During a Hot Topics segment about the upcoming debate between vice presidential hopefuls Vance and Tim Walz, Hostin explained what she would like to see go down on the debate stage.
“I want to see Coach Tim Walz ask J.D. Vance, ‘Are Haitian people really eating pets? Do you really believe that?’ I want him to question him about Project 2025. I want him to hold his feet to the fire,” she said, before speculating that Vance’s lack of courtroom experience could work against him when it comes to his debate skills.
She continued, “I want Tim Walz to, in his folksy way, call him a weirdo. Call him weird.”
But that’s not all. Hostin also wanted Walz to question Vance’s background, which is outlined in his memoir-turned-Netflix film Hillbilly Elegy. Vance, who is running alongside Donald Trump, grew up in a Rust Belt town in Ohio to a family who moved there from rural Kentucky, where he spent his summers as a kid.
“I also want him to challenge him on his sort of, ‘I’m a hillbilly. I’m an everyday man as well.’ We all know that that’s not true. He didn’t grow up there. He spent summers there,” she said. “Guess what? I went to my family reunion in Georgia every year. I’m not from Georgia. I’m from the Bronx!”
According to Hostin, the best way for Walz to “challenge” Vance is to do it “in a folksy way.”
“In a debate, what works is being authentic,” he said. “What does not work is trying to be someone you’re not. And if Tim Walz is anything, he is authentic.”
Hostin concluded by saying that she, along with 75% of Americans, will be watching the debate with her “cocktails” and her “truffled popcorn.”
“I do think this debate can change the game because we saw it change the game with Joe Biden,” she said, referring to President Joe Biden‘s decision to drop out of the election following his disastrous debate against Trump back in June.
The View airs on weekdays at 11/10c on ABC.