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Choice of J.D. Vance pleases area Republican leaders

By Brad Hundt 2 min read
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Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, and his wife Usha Chilukuri Vance arrive on the floor during the first day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum, Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The choice of Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance to be former President Donald Trump’s running mate atop the Republican ticket has gotten an enthusiastic thumbs up from Republican Party leaders.

Clint Blaney, who chairs the Greene County Republican Committee, said Vance would be able to gain “very valuable experience working for the country and Donald Trump.” It was announced Monday that Vance would be Trump’s running mate, emerging from a pack of three finalists that included Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.

Vance, who will be 40 on Aug. 2, has been in electoral politics for only a brief time. He was elected to the Senate in 2022, and before that was best known as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” a 2016 memoir that detailed his family’s hardscrabble life in rural Ohio and the culture that, in his estimation, has spawned poverty and dysfunction.

The Fayette County Republican Committee “fully supports the Trump/Vance ticket,” said Michelle Mowry, the committee’s chairman. “JD Vance has an impressive resume and brings a lot to the table. We look forward to four years of peace and prosperity with these two at the helm.”

Sean Logue, who leads Washington County’s Republican Party, said he and the local party “couldn’t be happier” with the choice of Vance.

“Vance is a scholar, Marine, author, and entrepreneur,” Logue said. “We are especially pleased because Vance grew up lower-middle class in Ohio, which gives him a special insight into the economic challenges of Southwestern Pennsylvania; he has been a tireless champion of natural gas, coal, and farming, all of which are vital to Washington County.”

Meanwhile, George Rattay, the chairman of the Fayette County Democratic Party, was more skeptical about the choice of Vance. He pointed out that Vance was once a harsh critic of Trump, but changed his tune when he entered Republican politics.

“Like many other Trump contenders who disparaged Trump in this year’s primaries … Vance is now willing to praise Trump and support his extremist ideology,” said Rattay, who is also the Democratic candidate in the 51st Legislative District against incumbent state Rep. Charity Grimm Krupa.

Rattay also said that choosing Vance does not offset any of Trump’s image or policy weaknesses.

“Trump has picked another white, conservative male who represents a state Trump already had a good chance of winning,” he said.

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