vice-president J.D. Vance had this week circled on his calendar for months.
He would free his second booka memoir about his faith journey, and launch a media blitz to promote it.
The centerpiece would be an appearance on “The View,” the daytime talk show that tripped The presidential aspirations of then-Vice President Kamala Harris when she failed to articulate the differences between her and her boss, Joe Biden. For Vance, a likely candidate for the White House in 2028, it would be an opportunity to show he could withstand a test in a program popular with women and little known as a haven for MAGA Republicans.
Then came a matter that Vance helped end the United States’ war with Iran – arriving precisely when his book tour was supposed to begin, bringing more questions than answers and putting him in an even hotter spot.
Critics, including some fellow Republicans, have been skeptical. Even President Donald Trump, who appointed Vance as chief negotiator, couldn’t resist a joke at his vice president’s expense.
“If it doesn’t work,” Trump joked, responding to a reporter at the G7 summit in Geneva this week who asked whether Vance could become a convenient scapegoat if the deal goes bad, “I blame JD.”