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Warren comes out on the offensive against JD Vance
Sen. Warren worked with Vance on legislation last year, but she was ready to attack Trump's running mate immediately after Monday's announcement.
On Monday night, Donald Trump unveiled his pick for vice president: Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio. Vance, who transformed from a vocal critic of Trump into a loyal supporter, was met with predictable praise from the right and criticism from the left. Now, it appears that one high-profile Biden surrogate is preparing for a sustained line of attack on Vance.
Mass. Sen. Elizabeth Warren joined a campaign press call Monday after the Vance announcement. She was the only elected official on the call, and used the majority of her time to focus on Vance’s opinions on economic issues.
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“With Trump-Vance, Social Security and Medicare cuts will bear down on seniors like an avalanche,” Warren said.
She accused him of “think[ing] sick people should pay more,” and of wanting to cut funding for Social Security, Medicare, health insurance, and infrastructure in order to “pay for a $3.5 million annual tax cut for billionaires.”
Vance has argued in the past that Social Security and Medicare cause large federal budget deficits, but changed his stance in 2022.
Warren also said she was eager for a vice presidential debate between Vance and Kamala Harris.
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“The VP will take it to JD Vance. I’ve known her for nearly 15 years, while she’s been in every kind of fight on behalf of working families, and she is strong,” Warren said on the call. “She knows what she’s talking about and she doesn’t give an inch … I’m looking forward to this debate.”
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Before Saturday’s assassination attempt on Trump, momentum was building among Democrats to potentially replace President Biden at the top of the ticket, citing his advanced age and disastrous debate performance. Harris would be the logical successor to Biden, and there has been significant public and private support for Harris in recent weeks.
While the shooting that nearly killed Trump cooled the public discussion of replacing Biden, private efforts are still underway to convince him that bowing out is the only chance Democrats have at avoiding a landslide defeat in November, CNN reported. Warren has publicly stood by Biden.
Warren and Vance worked together last year on bipartisan legislation designed to claw back executive compensation at large failed banks. Vance told Politico later that he was not afraid of getting pushback for working with her, and Warren told the outlet that he was “terrific to work with.”
After Monday’s announcement, Vance also took heat for his stances on abortion. Rep. Ayanna Pressley posted a quote from Vance where he said that “two wrongs don’t make a right” regarding abortion laws that allow for exceptions in the cases of rape and incest.
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