Donald Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, on Sunday said people who don’t have children can fully participate in American life, softening his earlier statements that the childless have a lesser stake in the country’s future.
Fox News host Trey Gowdy practically begged Vance to apologise for his 2021 remarks about the Democratic Party being run by “childless cat ladies” who supposedly have no “direct stake” in the country because they don’t have kids.
“It’s important for us to be pro-family as a country,” Vance said on Sunday Night in America with Trey Gowdy. “Of course, for a whole host of reasons, it’s not going to work out for some people. We should pray for those people and of course have sympathy for them.”
Vance’s 2021 commentary about the “childless left” and “childless cat ladies” recirculated after Trump named him his vice presidential running mate earlier this month, prompting a backlash that included criticism from celebrities such as actor Jennifer Aniston. Democrats have called Vance “weird,” and Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign called him a creep. Some Republicans have questioned whether he was the right choice of running mate.
In an interview on Friday, Vance doubled down on his initial remarks, saying he had “nothing against cats” but was simply “true” that people without kids are less invested in America’s future.
On Sunday, Gowdy, a former Republican congressman, introduced his interview with Vance by suggesting his earlier comments had been a mistake.
“Those of us who talk for a living make mistakes. We say things that, in hindsight, we might phrase differently, better, or not at all,” Gowdy said.
Then Gowdy talked about Catholic nuns he’d met at an airport who offered to pray for him: “Childless, dedicated to God, love this country, living lives of service to others.
“And it’s not just Catholic nuns,” Gowdy continued. “Some of the finest people I know don’t have children: teachers and guidance counsellors and lawyers and doctors. And they love other people’s children enough to teach and guide and protect and minister to them.”
Gowdy said the American people are forgiving “if we ask.” He then asked Vance if he agreed that there are many childless people who love this country and are invested in its future, and Vance said he did.
Vance complained that Democrats and the media had taken his cat lady comment out of context and insisted he was only trying to highlight the virtues of rearing children.
The left, Vance claimed, has become “explicitly anti-child and anti-family” because of rhetoric about how it’s a bad idea to have children due to climate change. He also falsely claimed Harris supports “ending the child tax credit.”
“I do think that being a parent actually has a profound effect on somebody’s perspective, and we should honour and respect that,” Vance said. “But there are a whole host of people who don’t have children for a whole host of reasons, and they certainly are great people who can participate fully in the life of this country.”