https://bearinsider.com/forums/6/topics/109450/replies/2350670

J.D. Vance was born on August 2, 1984, and he was elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2022.
Therefore, he was 38 years old when he was first elected.


Barack Obama was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2004, and he was 43 years old at that time, having been born on August 4, 1961.

He was later elected President in November 2008, at the age of 47.

…I had to do the compare because remember when people tried to laugh Obama off the stage for being too young? A community organizer?

In truth, he worked his way up.

Barack Obama was first elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1996. Born on August 4, 1961, he would have been 35 years old at that time.

Barack Obama served in the Illinois State Senate from 1997 to 2004, totaling approximately eight years.

Both intelligent guys, sure. Harvard Law vs Yale Law. But the notion that Obama was some kind of lackey… well, the GOP hypocrisy never ends, does it?

It probably doesn't matter much, but IMO this is a less than optimal electoral choice by Trump. I don't think Vance brings much other than exciting the Trump base (Trump doesn't need help with that).

That's the current version of Vance. The previous "Hillbilly Elegy" guy maybe would have brought something. But of course he would never have gotten picked back then.

calbear93 said:

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bear2034 said:

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I was hoping Trump picks Vivek but maybe he plans on using him elsewhere. With Vance, I thought we would need him to stay in the Senate but I understand we need the votes in Ohio. Overall, I'm pleased with the pick, he could have done much worse.

Vance vs. Kamala in 2028?

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Vivek would have been a disaster. Unless being a sycophant is the only requirement.

Vance has accomplished enough that he adds credibility to the ticket. Met him and his extremely educated wife once and thought they were very intelligent, down to earth, and thoughtful. Would be very comfortable if he eventually became president. He was surprisingly populist on need to provide more support for working class and underprivileged considering his background in venture capital, but I think he will come across very well in the midwest and other states up for grabs.

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There is the Vance that showed genuine empathy for the have-nots and the Vance that has attached himself to Trump. It will be interesting to see this play out.

I read his book (Hillbilly Elegy) and noted here that I liked it (this was a few years back). Poster AnarchistBear, whose takes and views I enjoy, said no, the book sucked, but I'm not sure if he actually read it, or just heard the media spin that it was the story of a down-and-out hillbilly who turned into a conservative Republican. Anyway, people should consider reading it. It seems to portray a different JD Vance than the one we've seen the past few years.

calbear93 said:

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sycasey said:

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It probably doesn't matter much, but IMO this is a less than optimal electoral choice by Trump. I don't think Vance brings much other than exciting the Trump base (Trump doesn't need help with that).

That's the current version of Vance. The previous "Hillbilly Elegy" guy maybe would have brought something. But of course he would never have gotten picked back then.

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I disagree. I think he would appeal to the blue collar workers in light of his background and his understanding of poverty and struggles of blue middle class workers. Unlike Trump, Vance accomplished everything despite not being given anything, including parents who were around. And if he is as down to earth in smaller circles (I know he does a lot of media and has to play to some political sentiments) as he was when he met with the investment community, he will do well. He will also allay some of the fears some of the wall street and venture capital folks may otherwise have with Trump.

So I think he plays well to both middle class and poor in the midwest as well as to wall street.

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That's just it, it seems to me there are two faces to Vance and he is playing up the Trumpy side now. But we'll see.

Whatever happened to Trump's last running mate?

sycasey said:

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calbear93 said:

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sycasey said:

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It probably doesn't matter much, but IMO this is a less than optimal electoral choice by Trump. I don't think Vance brings much other than exciting the Trump base (Trump doesn't need help with that).

That's the current version of Vance. The previous "Hillbilly Elegy" guy maybe would have brought something. But of course he would never have gotten picked back then.

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I disagree. I think he would appeal to the blue collar workers in light of his background and his understanding of poverty and struggles of blue middle class workers. Unlike Trump, Vance accomplished everything despite not being given anything, including parents who were around. And if he is as down to earth in smaller circles (I know he does a lot of media and has to play to some political sentiments) as he was when he met with the investment community, he will do well. He will also allay some of the fears some of the wall street and venture capital folks may otherwise have with Trump.

So I think he plays well to both middle class and poor in the midwest as well as to wall street.

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That's just it, it seems to me there are two faces to Vance and he is playing up the Trumpy side now. But we'll see.

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Having read his book and followed his career since, my take is that he has ascended from Appalachia to the US Senate so fast that he is still sort of figuring things out. And where he stands on things in ten years might well be different than now.

But I feel his rapid turn towards Trump is transactional as much as anything (not surprising).

Big C said:

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dajo9 said:

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Whatever happened to Trump's last running mate?

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I heard he's just hanging around somewhere...

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Maybe with Marshawn Lynch.

calbear93 said:

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Vivek would have been a disaster. Unless being a sycophant is the only requirement.

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I think a sycophant gets a higher score on the Purity Test than guys like Cruz, Rubio and Vance that initially accurately assessed what a piece of human garbage tRump is (and to this day tRump has done nothing to disprove the accuracy of their assessments) but then pulled a 180, broke out their knee pads, gargled, combed their hair and opened wide for no other reason than they wanted a large slice of the power pie.

What kind of a man does that? How do they sleep at night? How do they look at themselves in the mirror? How about have a f@ucking backbone and live your life by a Code of Honor.

bearister said:

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calbear93 said:

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Vivek would have been a disaster. Unless being a sycophant is the only requirement.

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I think a sycophant gets a higher score on the Purity Test than guys like Cruz, Rubio and Vance that initially accurately assessed what a piece of human garbage tRump is, and then pull a 180, break their knee pads out, gargle and open wide for no other reason than they want a large slice of the power pie. What kind of a man does that? How do they sleep at night? How do they look at themselves in the mirror? How about have a f@ucking backbone and live your life by a Code of Honor.

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I think JD Vance really pivoted. He doesn't need Trump as much as the other guys. He was already a senator, someone who had served in the military, had a successful venture capital career. His wife works at a big law firm and has clerked for two of the current Supreme Court justices. He was always more socially conservative and more of a populist than even Trump, coming from the view how establishment screws with the little guys. He probably saw the back dealing, political maneuvering that happens and decided that the elite protects only the elite.

Don't know him but logic dictates that, after coming from nothing and having made so much money from investments, book and movie rights and his wife's career, no reason for him to stand up for something he doesn't believe. Which makes him a bit scary.

Big C said:

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Three of the four finalists "went high" with their post-shooting public comments. Vance went low. I predict that he will be the Spiro Agnew to Trump's Richard Nixon, i.e. throwing out red meat while Trump recrafts his image (as "cuddly survivor of an assassination attempt").

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Ding ding ding!!!
Give this man his chicken dinner!!!

Big C said:

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calbear93 said:

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bear2034 said:

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I was hoping Trump picks Vivek but maybe he plans on using him elsewhere. With Vance, I thought we would need him to stay in the Senate but I understand we need the votes in Ohio. Overall, I'm pleased with the pick, he could have done much worse.

Vance vs. Kamala in 2028?

---

Vivek would have been a disaster. Unless being a sycophant is the only requirement.

Vance has accomplished enough that he adds credibility to the ticket. Met him and his extremely educated wife once and thought they were very intelligent, down to earth, and thoughtful. Would be very comfortable if he eventually became president. He was surprisingly populist on need to provide more support for working class and underprivileged considering his background in venture capital, but I think he will come across very well in the midwest and other states up for grabs.

---

There is the Vance that showed genuine empathy for the have-nots and the Vance that has attached himself to Trump. It will be interesting to see this play out.

I read his book (Hillbilly Elegy) and noted here that I liked it (this was a few years back). Poster AnarchistBear, whose takes and views I enjoy, said no, the book sucked, but I'm not sure if he actually read it, or just heard the media spin that it was the story of a down-and-out hillbilly who turned into a conservative Republican. Anyway, people should consider reading it. It seems to portray a different JD Vance than the one we've seen the past few years.

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Do you think the guy who wrote the book is the genuine JD? Or the guy who is stumping now is the real JD?

Orrrrr….
Maybe both are fakes, attempts to try to appeal to a particular audience. As his target audience changed, so did he.
That's not my kind of guy.

This is the last presidential ticket to win the White House that featured a candidate with facial hair.

s

concordtom said:

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Big C said:

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calbear93 said:

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bear2034 said:

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I was hoping Trump picks Vivek but maybe he plans on using him elsewhere. With Vance, I thought we would need him to stay in the Senate but I understand we need the votes in Ohio. Overall, I'm pleased with the pick, he could have done much worse.

Vance vs. Kamala in 2028?

---

Vivek would have been a disaster. Unless being a sycophant is the only requirement.

Vance has accomplished enough that he adds credibility to the ticket. Met him and his extremely educated wife once and thought they were very intelligent, down to earth, and thoughtful. Would be very comfortable if he eventually became president. He was surprisingly populist on need to provide more support for working class and underprivileged considering his background in venture capital, but I think he will come across very well in the midwest and other states up for grabs.

---

There is the Vance that showed genuine empathy for the have-nots and the Vance that has attached himself to Trump. It will be interesting to see this play out.

I read his book (Hillbilly Elegy) and noted here that I liked it (this was a few years back). Poster AnarchistBear, whose takes and views I enjoy, said no, the book sucked, but I'm not sure if he actually read it, or just heard the media spin that it was the story of a down-and-out hillbilly who turned into a conservative Republican. Anyway, people should consider reading it. It seems to portray a different JD Vance than the one we've seen the past few years.

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Do you think the guy who wrote the book is the genuine JD? Or the guy who is stumping now is the real JD?

Orrrrr….
Maybe both are fakes, attempts to try to appeal to a particular audience. As his target audience changed, so did he.
That's not my kind of guy.

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The JD Vance that wrote the book is at least as "genuine" as the one who has attached himself to MAGA. The point is, though, I don't think he's fully-formed. In his book, he traced his intellectual and emotional growth and implied that it was a journey that he was still on. By the end of the book, he was absolutely a somewhat conservative Republican, but definitely understood that "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps" was not always possible... that people needed a helping hand.

His turn towards Trump, though he may well believe some of that, was to get Trump's political endorsement.

I guess my point is that I don't see him as someone like a William F Buckley, who probably believed the same things at age 70 that he did at age 15. He's more of a work in progress (currently headed in the wrong direction, IMO). I would recommend people read the book. Try and get it from the library, so as not to put any more money in Vance's coffers.

okaydo said:

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This is the last presidential ticket to win the White House that featured a candidate with facial hair.

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That combined with the fact no one running for POTUS that survived an assassination attempt has ever won (Teddy Roosevelt in 1912 and Gerald Ford in 1975, two attempts).
It's a lock. With tRump's Evander Holyfield ear and Vance's whiskers, they are a lock for a loss!

bear2034 said:

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Aren't we all born Democrats until we get mugged by reality?

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I had heard that, which is why I learned self-defense. Still a Dem at age 60+, so I must be a bad ass or something.

Big C said:

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bear2034 said:

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Aren't we all born Democrats until we get mugged by reality?

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I had heard that, which is why I learned self-defense. Still a Dem at age 60+, so I must be a bad ass or something.

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Some of us were raised by smug republicans. But then we see the world in a different way, marry less-smug families, and flip.

BearGoggles said:

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No doubt Vance has changed his views and previously said bad things about Trump. How is that any different than Kamala? She called Biden a racist on national TV.

Many VPs have said bad things about their running mates. This is nothing burger.

in terms of qualifications, Vance checks all the boxes in terms of communication skills/intellect and looks very good in comparison to Harris. That debate should be amazing.

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That's a lie