Vice President JD Vance highlighted the importance of restoring the nuclear family and traditional marriage in his keynote address on Thursday, the second night of the GOP midterm convention, reflecting on the impact conservative commentator Charlie Kirk had on his life before his assassination last year.
Vance spent much of his 41-minute primetime speech lauding the values of a traditional marriage, telling supporters falling in love and “find(ing) somebody who’s worth building a life with” is the most important thing a person can do.
Vance opened his remarks by memorializing Kirk, a close friend of the vice president who was at the nominating convention when he was announced as Trump’s running mate.
“I will never forget that as I made that speech, as I addressed the country on the biggest stage of my life, in the front row … my dear friend Charlie Kirk was smiling and cheering me and reminding me that I had a good friend right here in the convention hall,” Vance said. “Charlie left behind two children … I hope that one day they will watch and they will know and they will understand what I’m trying to say to them tonight. Though they may not appreciate it today, history will record that your father was a great man.”
Vance’s remarks fall on the one-year anniversary of the death of Kirk, who was fatally shot at Utah Valley University on the first stop of his national “Prove Me Wrong” tour last September. Republicans held a tribute to Kirk earlier in the day at the midterm convention.
Usha Vance opted to stay home with 2-week-old baby
Vance spent much of his speech reflecting on the future and what it would mean for his own children, particularly his infant son who was born earlier this summer. Vance’s wife Usha previously revealed that Kirk’s death influenced the pair to have a fourth child.
Usha Vance was not in attendance at the convention in Dallas this week. Event organizers had reportedly invited her to attend, but she declined, according to the vice president.
“The organizers of the midterm RNC asked my wife, who had a two-week-old baby and three other kids that are very young, if she would come to Dallas, Texas, to introduce her husband, and she said, ‘Hell no! I’ve got four kids to take care of,’” Vice President Vance said.
Despite the convention focusing on the November elections, Vance appeared to look beyond that — referencing the future of his young children and the freedoms he wants them to enjoy. Those included lower prices at the grocery store, freedom to worship freely, and public safety, among other things.
“My job is to fight for every single person in this room, every person watching at home, as if they were my own family, as if they were my own kid,” Vance said. “I don’t just want these things for my kids; I want them for your kids too.”
The vice president spent much of his remarks highlighting the importance of the nuclear family, an issue that Vance has made a core tenet of his political brand in recent years. Much of that focused on the sanctity of traditional marriage, citing Kirk as an example — particularly the conservative commentator’s push to encourage young men to get married and have children.
Vance decried progressive Democrats who he claimed want to destroy the nuclear family model, denouncing them as “hateful words” and unreflective of the country’s values.
“To the radicals who wish to abolish my family and the thousands and millions of other families all across our country, we have a simple message for them: Stay the hell away from our kids,” Vance said.
“Like most parents, I want my kids to do the most important thing: I want them to fall in love. I want them to find somebody who’s worth building a life with,” he added. “I want them to be able to afford a home where they can raise their children in peace and prosperity and comfort.”
As Vance made his platform pitch, he again highlighted the influence Kirk had on the Republican base, arguing one does not need to agree with every policy issue to support the administration. Kirk, he said, was a “free thinker” who “did not always agree with us.”
But the vice president pointed to Kirk’s practice of engaging in debate with those whom he disagreed with in a bid to win over swing voters and those who are undecided on races in their home states.
“What I’m asking you to do is do what Charlie did. Do not throw the baby out with the bathwater,” Vance said. “Don’t give the country over to a bunch of crazy people because you happen to disagree with us on a policy issue here or there.”
Vance’s speech was followed by closing remarks from President Donald Trump, who offered the keynote address the night before. Trump reiterated many of the same talking points he did on Tuesday night, and told supporters he would keep his speech brief because he was “getting a little bit bored of politics now.”
He ultimately spoke for roughly 25 minutes, repeating talking points from the night before related to the convention’s attendance and a promise for a $5,000 dividend to U.S. adults if Republicans win the House and Senate.
The president did not offer further details on the payment, aside from the proposed name “Trump Dividend,” despite questions swirling around the fund on Thursday.