Trump Picks Ukraine-Skeptic J.D. Vance as Running Mate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has selected first-term Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as his vice-presidential candidate, completing the Republican ticket for November's elections. Vance has previously argued that the biggest threat to the United States is a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, and has argued against continued U.S. support of Ukraine.
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00:00All those in favor, signify by saying aye.
00:03Aye!
00:05All those opposed, signify by saying no.
00:08In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, and the motion is adopted.
00:12Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table.
00:18Roaring applause at the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin,
00:22as Ohio State Senator James David Vance, or J.D. Vance,
00:26is nominated as former President Donald Trump's running mate.
00:29Trump first made the announcement in a truth social post
00:32two days after surviving an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania,
00:36appearing at the convention with a bandage on his right ear.
00:40Here, big support for the former president's pick,
00:43a 39-year-old venture capitalist turned politician,
00:47who was once one of Trump's fiercest critics.
00:50He's a businessman. We have now, instead of one businessman,
00:54we've got two great businessmen, and that's what our country needs.
00:57J.D. Vance brings together the strength to be able to connect with people.
01:01They're in the middle. He can bring together maybe some people that are disheartened.
01:05Vance was raised by his grandparents in a small city in Ohio, a Rust Belt state.
01:11Men went on to serve in the U.S. Marines, including a tour of duty in Iraq,
01:15eventually becoming a venture capitalist in California,
01:18after graduating from Yale Law School.
01:21Vance wrote a best-selling memoir, Hillbilly Elegy,
01:24and once criticized Trump as a moral disaster,
01:27allegedly calling him America's Hitler,
01:30and said he was definitely not voting for Trump in the 2016 election.
01:35Now, Vance says he was wrong, changing his mind
01:38and becoming one of Trump's biggest allies.
01:41Somebody like a J.D. Vance would certainly do a lot to mobilize
01:46Donald Trump's more rural, more blue-collar base.
01:49Luckily, Trump is a very transactional person,
01:52and if somebody's useful to him now, he'll go along with them
01:56and forget maybe what was said in the past.
01:59Vance has been vocal about putting America first,
02:02opposing interventionist U.S. foreign policies,
02:05slamming President Biden's aid package to Ukraine amid Russia's ongoing invasion.
02:10Vance has previously argued that the biggest threat to the United States
02:14is a Chinese invasion of Taiwan,
02:17and that U.S. weapons going to Kiev should be going to Taipei.
02:21The best way to help Ukraine, I think, from a European perspective,
02:24is for Europe to become more self-sufficient.
02:26Vladimir Putin is, of course, in the geopolitical backyard of Europe.
02:29The United States, as it focuses more on East Asia,
02:32simply can't be expected to foot a disproportionate share of the burden.
02:36USA! USA!
02:39With the Republican ticket finalized for November's election,
02:42high spirits in Milwaukee on the first night of the four-day convention,
02:46with the party eyeing a return to the White House.
02:49Chris Ma and Joyce Tsen for Taiwan Plus.