We Have Some Ideas About What JD and Usha Vance Might Disagree On

On Friday, Usha Vance sat down with NBC to promote—you guessed it—her new podcast, Storytime With the Second Lady, which premiered today. In the 30-minute interview, she attempted to sidestep questions about her differing views with JD Vance, saying, “There’s no expectation that we are going to see eye to eye on everything.” And I can’t say I’m surprised that the second couple has their disagreements over politics, since nothing about this pairing has ever made much sense on paper—except, perhaps, their shared ambition to climb the ranks of government and power.

However curious we might be, Usha didn’t share specifics as to what she and JD disagree on, saying that’s “the privilege of marriage.” But being that she is a child of immigrants, not a Christian, and a woman, I have some ideas!

“Sometimes I have thoughts that fit very comfortably into one side or another,” she added. “Sometimes I have views that are way more idiosyncratic.” Usha, a Yale Law graduate, was once a litigator at a progressive law firm and a registered Democrat until 2014, making her dramatic political shift into supporting fascism a surprise to those who knew her.

“The expectation is that we are going to be open-minded and have a conversation, and that I’ll provide meaningful input from the perspective of someone who loves him and wants him to succeed.” Maybe one of the disagreements is how JD keeps bragging to crowds about them having sex. At the Right to Life Rally in January, he announced that Usha was pregnant with their fourth child, and last week, he further bragged to a crowd in Michigan about (basically) forcing her into having another kid.

“I remember when we decided to run for vice president, I said, ‘Honey, I really want to have a fourth kid.’ And she said, ‘Well, you can become vice president, or you can have a fourth baby.’ But, ladies and gentlemen, I am persuasive ‘cause I got both,” Vance told the crowd, because clearly he doesn’t share Usha’s stance on keeping private matters to the “privilege of marriage.”

So when NBC’s Kate Snow asked if he really did persuade her, it seems like it would have been an easy answer, right? But not only did Usha not answer the question, but she seemed to be scrambling to find any way out.

“In a manner of speaking,” she said, “People have asked me if we’re going to have a fourth baby, and I’ve never closed the door on that, but I grew up in a family of two, and I thought that was a great number. And then I had two kids, and I thought, I didn’t feel complete.” So…in a manner of speaking…he did persuade her?

“We did feel very complete with the third child in many ways…But as time passed, I was feeling more and more excited about that possibility, and so there. If there’s a chance, I should take it. I knew I would be happy if we only had 3 kids. And I knew we would be happy with 4.” But would she be happy with her husband airing her business to Michiganders? I doubt it.

But I’m happy she has the freedom, resources, and support to understand her pregnancy viability and make a choice based on what her doctors advise. (Smiling so hard so that I don’t spontaneously combust).

She didn’t share much about a possible 2028 Vance ticket, only saying that JD is “very much focused on the midterms right now.” She must know how unpopular her husband is as a presidential pick. Just ask Trump.