(The Center Square) – Vice President JD Vance called for unity among voters, touted administration policies, and honored Charlie Kirk in a speech Thursday night attempting to motivate Republicans to turn out in the upcoming midterm elections.
“By the end of 2024, you were tired. We were tired as a country, but you were not defeated,” Vance told a Dallas crowd at the Republican midterm convention on Thursday. “The radicals in Washington - they could take much from us, but they couldn't take our will to fight back, and so all of us came together on November the fifth, and we made Donald J. Trump the 47th president of the United States.”
Vance highlighted the Trump administration’s accomplishments over the last two years, including immigration enforcement, crackdowns on fraud, and economic stimulation. He contrasted President Donald Trump's policy priorities with the Biden administration’s goals, which he said drove inflation to an all-time high and depleted the country’s housing supply.
The vice president called on support for the “American birthright,” highlighting his desire to support law enforcement, affordable housing and religious freedom.
“Like most parents, I want my kids to do the most important thing. I want them to fall in love,” Vance said. “I want them to find somebody who's worth building a life with, and I want them to be able to afford a home where they can raise their children in peace and prosperity and comfort.”
Vance slammed policies during the Biden administration that he said caused workers wages to fall by $3,000, drove inflation up 20% and doubled the cost of a home. He also slammed the administration's immigration policies. which resulted in millions of illegal immigrants entering the country.
“Our nation became a place where you had to be rich to enjoy what used to be the birthright of every ordinary middle-class life,” Vance said. “Our country was stolen from us and handed to strangers.”
Vance also touted his work to enforce what he said was $250 billion in fraud and penalize individuals convicted of fraudulent welfare schemes. He pointed to a case last May where two Somali national women were charged with defrauding Medicaid of $46 million through fake autism clinics.
The former Ohio senator slammed some Democrat opponents running for Congress in the midterm elections, including Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and Texas U.S. candidate James Talarico.
“They'll say the same stuff: defund the police, abolish the border, the green new scam – we've heard all this stuff before, but I think that what's new about them is what motivates them,” Vance said. “A new type of hardcore hatred.”
He criticized El-Sayed for his association with controversial streamer Hasan Piker, who said “America deserves 9/11.” Vance also criticized Talarico’s past statements supporting transgender surgery for minors.
“These are candidates who, when they're not calling to repeal the Second Amendment, they will attack you as a literal white supremacist if you dare to criticize Sharia law,” Vane said.
In the middle of his speech, Vance was interrupted by a protester waving a Mexico flag.
“Well, well, my friend, if you love Mexico so much, get your a** over there, I'll buy you the plane ticket,” Vance retorted to massive cheers from the audience.
The vice president concluded his speech with a call for unity to voters who have felt alienated by the Trump administration's military conflict in Iran. He called for voters who disagree to unify with the party in order to maintain Republican control of Congress and remember the wins of the last two years.
“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 said.
“I'm not asking anybody to agree on every single policy of the administration. What I am asking you to do is to recognize the contrast with the radicals and recognize the achievements of the last 18 months,” Vance continued. “We have done a lot, my friends, and we can do a lot more if we fight together.”