Vance Casts Himself as Trump's Heir in Dallas Keynote

Closing the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Vice President JD Vance made an explicit pitch to become Donald Trump's political heir in 2028.

Vice President JD Vance closed day two of the Republican midterm convention in Dallas on Thursday night with a blistering keynote that positioned him as Donald Trump's political heir. Chants of "JD, JD" greeted him on stage — the liveliest reception anyone besides Trump received across the two-day event — with some attendees shouting that he should be the party's 2028 nominee. When asked about a future run, he smiled and said, "We gotta take care of business this November, then we'll worry about what comes next."

The loudest cheer of the night came when a protester briefly interrupted the speech. Vance said the protester was waving a Mexican flag and fired back: "Well, my friend, if you love Mexico so much, get your ass over there — I'll buy you the plane ticket." According to The Guardian, the speech featured exaggerated claims of success, dog whistles, and an echo of Trump's false claim that Democrats "cheered" the 7 October massacre of Israelis. He also attacked transgender rights and accused Democrats of "doubling down on the crazy."

The National Memo's Matt Gertz reports that Vance's immigration line — that two years ago Americans were "tired of being called racist for noticing that our country was becoming dirtier and poorer and less safe and less prosperous" — closely echoes Tucker Carlson's infamous December 2018 Fox News monologue. Gertz notes Vance used similar language on Carlson's show in July 2021, the day he launched his Senate campaign, and that Carlson later helped persuade Trump to endorse him and pick him as his 2024 running mate.

Vance walked a careful tightrope, making his own case to the base without provoking the notoriously sensitive Trump. He called Trump "the toughest SOB in American politics" and ended by shouting that Trump was the "greatest president." According to The Guardian, a poll found 43% of likely Republican primary voters want Vance as the 2028 nominee, ahead of Marco Rubio at 21% and Donald Trump Jr at 7%. Unlike Rubio and Cruz, who ran against Trump in 2016, Vance has never publicly drawn Trump's ire.

Foreign policy was strikingly missing from the address, despite Vance's attachment to the deeply unpopular Iran war. The Guardian reports that Trump's advisers, per The Wall Street Journal, have raised the prospect the war could drag on through the rest of Trump's term. Vance avoided the topic directly, instead invoking the late Charlie Kirk — assassinated in Utah one year ago — and his disdain for conflict, urging undecided voters not to "throw the baby out with the bathwater" over policy disagreements.

Other contenders auditioned in Dallas as well: The Guardian reports Robert F Kennedy Jr delivered a well-received speech attacking Democrats, while Ted Cruz drew a rousing home-state response. Marco Rubio skipped the convention entirely, touring South America instead. Vance's challenge is keeping Trump's favor intact while building a coalition of his own for a post-Trump party.