Multiple Republican Senators Publicly Slam JD Vance, Drawing Fiery Response from Trump Jr.
One of the most well-known quotes often attributed to Winston Churchill concerns the idea of having enemies.
“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life,” is the way this Churchill quote is commonly shared.
Following some internal party criticism of Vice President J.D. Vance, it seems Donald Trump Jr. shares Churchill’s perspective.
To that end, Vance was among the key figures entangled in the Signal messaging app controversy that made headlines this week.
(Other individuals caught up in the leaked text chain included Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz.)
For those unfamiliar, Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, was inadvertently added to a Signal group chat regarding military action against Houthi terrorists in Yemen. A Waltz staffer mistakenly included him in the discussion—a conversation Goldberg was clearly not meant to be part of.
The Atlantic proceeded to publish the entire text exchange on Wednesday, revealing that Vance expressed some hesitation regarding the proposed military response.
In essence, Vance argued that the Houthis posed more of a challenge for Europe than for the United States, a position he has consistently maintained in discussions about various geopolitical matters in the region.
According to a hard-hitting Thursday report from Jewish Insider, certain GOP members are expressing frustration over Vance’s firm stance on prioritizing American interests above all else.
The outlet reported that some Republican lawmakers “have felt that Vance’s claim that the endeavor was largely about ‘bailing Europe out again’ was an admission that he does not see the Houthis as a significant threat to U.S. national security despite the militant group having exploded a drone meters from the U.S. Embassy Branch Office in Tel Aviv in July and it being responsible for ongoing attacks on U.S. military vessels and allies.”
“A number of Republican senators are very concerned about [his foreign policy views],” an anonymous GOP senator told the outlet. “They think it’s quite revealing. It reveals a mindset that I’m sure is perplexing to our European allies.”
Another unnamed source expressed disappointment with Vance’s stance, stating, “It was shocking to me that he didn’t see the need to strike back when they struck our naval vessels. That’s not a British problem or a European problem. Frankly, them striking our friends in Israel is more than enough justification. It’s the Tucker Carlson view of how to use military power.”
While Vance declined to comment to the Insider, Donald Trump Jr. did not hesitate to weigh in, unleashing sharp criticism toward these unnamed critics.
“These seven cowardly neocons attacking J.D. anonymously are genuine p*****s. If they really feel this way, then they should at least be man enough to put their names to these quotes,” Trump Jr. stated to the publication. “The fact that they are too cowardly to do that is exactly why I’m so happy that these RINOs are a dying breed in our party—whether they realize it or not.”
(Trump Jr.’s mention of “seven” individuals is uncertain, as Jewish Insider did not specify the exact number of respondents.)
Jewish Insider also highlighted that multiple GOP senators have publicly supported Vance’s remarks, further demonstrating the ongoing divide within the party.