In a recent claim made by an account affiliated with the Harris campaign, Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) was accused of saying “he and Trump will ‘go to war against’ childless people, who he calls ‘sad, lonely, and pathetic.'” However, this statement has been verified as false, with the Harris campaign taking Vance’s comment out of context.
Vance did say that society must “go to war against the anti-child ideology in our country,” but his full remarks reveal that he was referring to a specific group of people and not childless adults overall. He argued that those who base their life’s meaning solely on work or education are “sad, lonely, and pathetic.” Vance emphasized that everyone has the potential to be an exceptional parent and that society should encourage and support this role rather than discouraging it through negative cultural messaging.
The misrepresentation of Vance’s statement highlights the importance of understanding the context in which a speaker’s words are used. In this case, the Harris campaign took his comment out of context to create an unfavorable portrayal of Sen. JD Vance. However, as the full transcript of his speech shows, Vance was not targeting childless individuals but rather those who promote anti-child ideologies and focus on their careers or education at the expense of family life.