Whether you’re a fan of theirs or not, there’s no question that JD and Usha Vance have typically put on a very loved-up display, laying bare the very obvious differences between their relationship and Donald and Melania Trump’s. However, since JD was announced as Trump’s running mate in 2024, there have been signs that the Vances’ marriage might be feeling the strain.
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We’ll start with that blip of tension experts spotted from JD and Usha’s pre-VP interview with “Fox & Friends.” As many will recall, Usha made no secret of the fact that she wasn’t exactly keen on the idea of becoming second lady. Her exact words? “I guess the way that I put it is, I’m not raring to change anything about our lives right now, but I really believe in JD, and I really love him, and so we’ll just sort of see what happens,” she said. In other words, it was a diplomatic way for the legal powerhouse to say, “I’d really rather not, but if we must, then sure.” Or, as body language expert Traci Brown exclusively put it to Nicki Swift, “She is really not into this, but is gonna be supportive.”
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Speaking of Brown’s assessment, the author of “How to Detect Lies, Fraud and Identity Theft: A Guide” added that Usha’s hair was also a dead giveaway of how uncomfortable she was with the prospect of her husband’s new gig. “The first thing I noticed is that she was hiding behind her hair at the opening of the interview,” she told us. Even so, it does bear mentioning that even with all the verbal and non-verbal clues of tension, Brown reiterated that Usha seemed genuinely supportive of her husband’s ambition. Ah, the things we do for love.
Usha often gets called in to defend JD’s character
One of the other things Usha Vance said in her joint “Fox & Friends” interview with her husband was that she was apprehensive about the scrutiny they would likely be subjected to if her husband was named as Donald Trump’s running mate. Of course, that was a very valid concern — and unfortunately for the scrutiny-shy Usha, she has had to explain some of his comments with her trademark diplomacy.
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Enter, the “Childless cat ladies” comment. ICYMI, in an oft-quoted unearthed interview with Tucker Carlson prior to his Fox News firing, JD lamented that the U.S. under Democratic Party leadership was governed by “a bunch of childless cat ladies.” Unsurprisingly, the backlash was swift, and as Alyssa Farah Griffin pointed out on “The View,” women of all political persuasions were (understandably) furious.
In the wake of JD’s comments resurfacing in 2024, he has said the comment was sarcastic and that he was trying to make a point about the difficulties women with children faced (and even, notably, mentioned Usha’s own struggles balancing work and motherhood in an interview with NBC News). Of course, not everyone loved his explanation of often using sarcasm in speech and that essentially, “it was what it was.” And that brings us to Usha being asked to comment on it in her standalone interview with “Fox & Friends.” In that interview, she reiterated that JD had been speaking off the cuff and was taken out of context. However, when JD clarified that he didn’t regret making the comment, Usha made a point of saying he would never intentionally hurt anyone’s feelings. Context aside, given that Usha had specifically said she wanted to avoid scrutiny, we can’t help but wonder if she was a little annoyed at her husband for putting her in that situation.
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JD needed a marriage etiquette reminder from Doug Emhoff
Several months after Usha Vance was called on to clarify her husband’s “childless cat ladies” remark, he became vice president and she second lady. Ahead of the January 2025 inauguration, the Vances posed at a photocall with outgoing VP Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff — but in a supremely awkward moment, the latter had to give JD an etiquette reminder.
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In a major faux pas, JD exited the car that took him and Usha to the White House, paused momentarily for Usha, then made to go up and greet Emhoff and Harris before she’d got around the car. Cue a frantic (yet smiley) gesture from Emhoff to wait for his wife. Harris seemed to stifle a giggle before her expression turned into one that looked more disapproving. There is a chance the icy weather had more to do with the facial expressions, but we can’t help but wonder if the presidential candidate was simultaneously amused and annoyed by JD’s rookie move.
We will give JD some benefit of the doubt since he actually was a rookie, and it did seem as though he was trying to ease the awkwardness of smiling at Harris and Emhoff from the steps while he waited for his wife. What’s more, he also flashed what looked like an apologetic smile Usha’s way when she eventually did get to her mark. On top of that, pics from the inauguration showed Usha gazing pretty adoringly at her husband, so something tells us she wasn’t too offended by the mishap. Even so, it probably wouldn’t bode well for the marriage if there were many more blunders going forward.
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Some felt the Vances were acting ‘off’ in Greenland
JD Vance deciding to tag along on his wife’s trip to Greenland raised a ton of eyebrows. International relations aside, some even criticized it as a clingy husband move. The fact that Usha Vance ended up canceling some of the things on her itinerary – and, ahem, had some things canceled for her (like a visit to the Tupilak Travel agency, which very publicly announced that she was not welcome in their store — a double blow since in the same statement, they mentioned that typically everyone was welcome) — didn’t help, either. An awkward situation, all around.
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However, things got even more embarrassing when some pointed out that the couple’s behavior with one another felt a little icy. This happened after Usha hurried down from the plane while JD strolled out behind her. TBH, it’s possible this was discussed ahead of time, specifically so JD could get a solo photo op. It’s also possible that Usha was simply more motivated to get out of the cold than her husband was. Granted, it does bear mentioning that he jokingly described the weather as “cold as sh*t” when he met with troops at the Pittufik Space Base. Usha responded by giggling before stepping closer to hold his hand.
All things considered, while there are a few weird things about the Vances’ marriage, it certainly does seem as though the two remain smitten with one another. Of course, the massive changes in their lives and the sheer amount of scrutiny they’re under could create trouble for Usha and JD at some point. However, something tells us they’ll get through it.
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