JD Vance’s 'childfree-shaming tweets' show how 'dumb' the 'intellectual new right' really is: journalist

26 September 2023

Many of the Republicans who ran as hyper-MAGA culture warriors in the 2022 midterms lost, but Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) was among the exceptions. The "Hillbilly Elegy" author emphasized MAGA themes throughout his campaign, defeating far-right GOP rival Josh Mandel in the primary before defeating the Democratic nominee, former Rep. Tim Ryan, by about 7 percent in the general election.

In an article published by The Nation on September 26, journalist Ginny Hogan emphasizes that Vance was hailed as part of the "intellectual new right" during his 2022 campaign. But his vapid tweets, Hogan laments, show how intellectually bankrupt his ultra-MAGA politics really are.

Vance's lack of substance, she argues, is evident every time he attacks someone he disagrees with as a "cat lady" — a term Vance has used to describe liberal economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman.

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In 2016, Vance was vehemently critical of Trump. But that was before he flip-flopped and went full MAGA.

"Between 2016 and now," Hogan observes, "Vance’s more significant change has been in tone, not substance. While the book ('Hillbilly Elegy') is packaged somewhat empathetically, the modern Vance is harsher — quick to hit opponents with cat lady digs, for example. So, when did these cat lady tweets start? We can't know exactly, since most of Vance's old tweets are gone."

Hogan continues, "By July 2021, though, he'd turned on the 'establishment,' embraced MAGA, and was putting the cat lady trope to work…. Vance also started shitposting more generally, using dumb jokes to criticize anything he didn't like…. Vance also took his cat lady routine onto Fox News, telling Tucker Carlson that the U.S. is run by 'childless cat ladies.'"

Hogan notes that Vance "has a specific vendetta against those who don't want children."

"I'm not quite sure what Vance was after with these childfree-shaming tweets," Hogan explains. "I've never heard of anyone getting mocked into having a child.

Read Ginny Hogan's full article for The Nation at this link.

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