Vice President JD Vance: Faith, Family and Country

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JD Vance: Certainly everybody in the media presumes that I'm just going to run for president, right? I'm the vice president, the president's term limited, so that's what you're going to do. You run for president. When we do make that decision, the first and most important thing is going to be, can a campaign be consistent with the duties that I owe to my kids and into my family?
John Fuller: That's Vice President JD Vance thinking a lot about what's best for his children and family, and you'll hear more of what he had to say today on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. Today we have a great conversation, Jim, that you had with the vice president just a few days ago in Washington, DC. What was that experience like?
Jim Daly: It's always interesting when you're interviewing a high government official. Just the security you have to go through is amazing. And thankfully we were there at the Naval Observatory in his home, in his living room there. And it was a great setting to be able to have this discussion. And you know, I don't really care if it's an R or a D. I want to get to know the person, what makes them tick spiritually, where they're coming from, and and then talking about the policies that help families because that's what I believe we're all about here at Focus on the Family. It was an energizing discussion, I felt. And I always enjoy that, especially with someone like JD Vance. He's a very bright person who came from a very difficult background. And we basically talked about some of the book that's just come out called Communion. And it really does give an account for his life growing up very difficult and then falling into atheism as a Marine, and then coming out of that and realizing that faith is a central part of what he needed. And he turned to the Catholic faith. And I just really appreciate his openness, his honesty, and what you're about to hear.
John Fuller: Yeah, and I'm looking forward to this. And by the way, we'd like to remind you to stay informed on all the issues that we're facing in our world today, in our country, and facing the family. You can sign up for a free subscription to our Daily Citizen newsletter. It's an email that will keep you informed on things you need to know from a Christian perspective. Sign up for free on our website. Let's go ahead and hear now Jim's conversation with Vice President JD Vance on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly.
Jim Daly: Mr. Vice President, it's great to have you on Focus on the Family.
JD Vance: Thank you. It's good to be with you.
Jim Daly: Appreciate it. Thank you for the many mentions that you've given to Focus in both the Senate time and then as vice president.
JD Vance: Yeah, yeah. James Dobson was he was very influential to me.
Jim Daly: Now, you had to be a young man when that when you were listening to him.
JD Vance: I was. I actually remember talking to one of my my best friend's moms about it because she was kind of surprised. I was 14 or 15 and she was surprised that I would listen to him. He would go on like Larry King Live too and do things like that. And I just thought, you know, he was a very wise guy. He clearly had a lot of interesting thoughts about the world. And I just always naturally gravitated towards him for for whatever reason, even as a teenager.
Jim Daly: I think, you know, I have a similar feeling toward him. And you know, I think that father hole may have been part of that for both of us. You know, you and I share similar backgrounds, not exactly the same, but I lost my mom at nine and my dad at 11 and lived with my brother through high school. That was a that was a roller coaster ride.
JD Vance: I bet it was.
Jim Daly: But for you, what was that early childhood experience? Where were you at? What what was taking place? Your dad, your mom, etc.
JD Vance: Yes, it was pretty chaotic. So, you know, I I was born in southwestern Ohio. And And like a lot of people in southwestern Ohio, my family had come from Eastern Kentucky. So sort of coal mines, the deep poverty of Appalachia. And my family moved to southwestern Ohio because that's where the steel mill jobs were. And so I was raised by my grandparents mostly because my my mom struggled with addiction. And so it was sort of in and out of my life. Very sweet person. She's been clean and sober for 11 years, but particularly those first 10 or so years of my life was just a lot of chaos. You know, a bit of a revolving door of father figures, you know, stepdads, boyfriends, people who would come in and out. And And my own dad was was again a he was a very good man, but he had actually given me up for adoption when I was 5 years old. And so he was just not in the picture really at all from the time I was 5 until I was 12. And then, you know, amazingly, I think by the grace of God, a lot of things happened when I was 12 or 13. My grandfather unfortunately passed away. My father then reentered my life. My my grandmother sort of where I'd been bouncing around a little bit, I I decided to just go and live with her full time, which gave me some stability. So even though things were a little chaotic and unconventional, I did have that rock. And that rock was my grandmother.
Jim Daly: Yeah. And in that context, when you look at your life, look at what has happened. You You become vice president. And that's crazy.
JD Vance: Yeah. It's amazing, man. It's crazy.
Jim Daly: I mean, when you look at it, how?
JD Vance: I You know, I don't know. Maybe God just always had a plan. Maybe I was lucky. It's probably a little bit of a combination of both things, but I I do think, you know, I I was talking to somebody. He's a friend of mine and and he's he was fascinated just by my story. And And this was before I ever got into politics. But he said that he actually talked to a child psychologist. And that person said, the thing that is always common among kids who come from rough backgrounds but are able to make something of themselves. The thing that's always common is that they have one person in their life, whether it's a teacher, an aunt or an uncle, a grandparent who is their anchor. And for me, that really was my mamaw. And she was, you know, in some ways a very devout Christian, in other ways a very unconventional woman. You know, she she cursed like a sailor. Um you know, I I I've I've to this day never quite gotten rid of my foul mouth because I was raised by a woman who would drop the F bomb all the time. But she also, you know, she she would read the Bible, pray multiple times per day. She was also very tough. You know, I I remember when I was 12 or 13 years old and I was hanging out in the in the neighborhood with a kid who was sort of known to be getting into drugs. And she said, JD, if you ever hang out with that person again, then I'm going to run them over with my car. And nobody will ever find out about it.
Jim Daly: And you believed her?
JD Vance: And I believed it. And because it was mamaw, you know, people just believed her. And they recognized that she had this toughness to her and they were afraid of her. I mean, people were legitimately terrified of my grandmother. She had 19 handguns when she died. All of them were loaded and stacked around the house. So she was a tough old bird. And because of that, she was able, I think, to direct my pathway in the right way.
Jim Daly: Oh yeah. And through the high school years, I mean, you were you going in and out of a commitment to the Lord? Or I mean, describe what it was like. And then Marine Corps, build that in cuz you really walked away from anything faith wise, right?
JD Vance: Yeah. Sure. Yeah, that's right. That 's right. So you know, the the because mamaw I realized this in hindsight that mamaw was my attachment to my faith. So she loved the Lord. We would read the Bible all the time. We would pray a lot, but we didn't go to church very much. And we didn't have a great faith community. And so to the extent that I went to church, I mentioned my dad had come back into my life. And so he was very often the person who would take me to church if I went at all. But when mamaw died, this was I was 20 years old. I was in the Marine Corps. I was about to leave for Iraq just a few months before I left for Iraq. And I just felt this emptiness. And again, with the benefit of hindsight, I recognized that she was in my attachment to my Christian faith. If I had questions, if I had doubts, she is the person I would call. I didn't have a pasture. I didn't have a friend that I was really close with in in the Lord. And And that just kind of disappeared. And And as it disappeared, I think I I slowly lost my faith. And so, you know, I'm a 21 year old kid. I'm in the Marine Corps. I'm interested in what every 21 year old man is, which is, you know, going to the bars, trying to meet somebody. And that kind of followed me through. I went to Ohio State after I got out of the Marines. I was I just turned 23 and and went to Ohio State. And I just didn't have any need of it. And I And I sort of saw myself as this person. You know, I'd come from nothing. I'd made something of myself. I had this real arrogance about myself. But I also didn't realize the time I was becoming remarkably obsessed with things that didn't matter. I cared about credentials. I cared about what school I went to. I cared about what job I had, what what what amount of money I made. And there was, and this is what ultimately led me back to my faith. I I write about this in the book, this recognition that the things that really mattered, like the things that mamaw cared about, those were the things that Christianity had formed in my mind. And the things that really didn't matter were the things that the world was forming in my mind. And I I slowly developed this sense that while I was arrogant and I didn't need Jesus and I didn't need the Bible, I slowly realized this sense that without them I was becoming a bad person. I was becoming somebody that mamaw would not be proud of.
Jim Daly: So you could you could see that and feel that.
JD Vance: I I I slowly. It's not something that hits you like a ton of bricks, but it is one of these things that just slowly started to gnaw at my mind that I was going to be very successful. I knew that I was going to be. I was ambitious. I was doing well in school, but I didn't feel like I was going to be successful in the way that really mattered.
Jim Daly: You know, one of the things it's one of the toughest questions I'll get asked after I speak about a very similar childhood. And you I want to ask this of you because it's a difficult one for me to answer, which is like not holding resentment for your bad dad.
JD Vance: Sure.
Jim Daly: Um the tough things that happened to you, how have you so easily, they'll say often, given that up? And they don't know. There's those days of It wasn't easy. And there wasn't a prescription that you can follow. It's just something you have to do. You got to let go of people that have hurt you.
JD Vance: That's right.
Jim Daly: And let go of those emotions or it will kill you.
JD Vance: Yeah. And And look, I I I I'm a big believer that that grace is the process by which that happens. I don't think that I could have done it by myself. I was an incredibly resentful 24 year old kid. And In fact, I remember thinking to myself, I'm going to go further and I'm going to achieve more just to spite the people who weren't there for me, right? There was this real sense of resentment. And I I I guess the a couple of things helped me. But again, for me it was very much a process. I think number one is you have to be humble. And you have to recognize that because we are all fallen creatures, maybe we're fallen in different ways. In the same way that somebody else wronged you, you will wrong somebody else. Like I'm a super present and active father, but I'm sure that in 20 years my kids will look back on something and say, well, dad screwed that up. Or maybe dad was too tough. Or maybe dad lost his temper that one time. And I think that recognition breeds a certain humility, a recognition that, you know, as Jesus says in the Lord's Prayer, forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And I think you have to do those things simultaneously. You have to be willing to forgive other people because I think that spirit of forgiveness and grace is something that will be extended to you.
Jim Daly: Now, how in the world do you do that in politics? I mean, I I watch from a distance. I admire you guys that can actually have those debates because it's become so visceral. You know, it really has. I I know the stories, you know, before us, like the old time politicians talk about going to dinner together, both Republican and Democrat. And they had some friendship behind the scenes. Doesn't feel like that anymore.
JD Vance: You know, there's something CS Lewis once said that was that that's definitely influenced how I think about this, which is that you know, sometimes you don't feel the thing in your heart, but you still have to will yourself to do it, right? You have to try even though the feelings aren't always there. So yeah, sometimes a a Democrat or somebody in the media will say something to me. And I'm not going to lie to you and say that I I have this like Christian charity that just wells up inside me. Sometimes I hate that person. But But what I I do try to remember is that that part of the will that even though I may not feel particularly charitable towards that person, I have to constantly remind myself. I have to pray for that person. And again, I think this is the process by which Christ ultimately acts on human beings and transforms us is that you may not always feel the right way. But if you try, even if you try only 20% of the time, slowly those seeds of grace blossom into something bigger. And And man, I I I am as imperfect on this as anybody. I do not always feel charitable towards my political enemies. I sometimes see them saying things to about me that are just obviously lies and obviously dishonest. But, you know, I think I'm probably better at it than I was 3 years ago. And maybe that is ultimately the lesson of the Christian gospel is you walk on the road. You don't always sprint on the road. Maybe sometimes you take two steps backwards and three steps forwards, but you just got to try, man.
Jim Daly: Well, you give me hope. You give me hope cuz you know, in so many people today that it 's what's driving us and driving the the separation. And we we've got to find some common ground to work together on some things. Um let's finish that part of the story though. You get out of the Marines. You did well. You went to Yale Law School. That's a big achievement. And where does the Lord connect with you again? How does that happen?
JD Vance: Sure. Sure. Yeah, so so some of it is is honestly intellectual. I was I was very interested in political philosophy and and sort of how is it that human beings arrange their societies. And so I I became increasingly intrigued by the ancient Christian philosophers. And I started thinking, well, if they have something smart to say, then maybe that comes from a deeper well of truth. Right? I became obsessed with um this ancient Christian thinker Augustine and who wrote this book called The City of God, which I read in a college class. And I was like, this is way smarter than anything else that I've read about politics or life. But But more personally, you know, I'm having this like reflection on I'm in law school. I am going to make more money than anybody in my family has ever made, right? I'm I'm I I already know that I'm going to have, you know, a privilege that nobody else in my family has ever had. But like am I actually good at the things that mamaw cared about? Am I going to be a good husband? Am I going to be a good father? And that sort of came into particularly sharp focus because you know, I fell in love. And I met a girl and I was like 3 weeks into it. I was like, this is the girl I 'm going to marry. This is the girl that I I want to be with. And at the same time, like I had a temper. I was not a particularly good boyfriend. I had not sort of developed these relationship virtues. And I started to think to myself, well, there is there is an emptiness here. There is something that is missing here. And I didn't quite know how to articulate it. But, you know, there were people who would pop into my life who would sort of hey, hey, come to church with me. And hey, maybe if Augustine's right about um you know, how to organize human society, maybe he's also right about Jesus. And And those sort of conversations started happening at the same time that I had this void. And, you know, eventually it got to the point where it's like, you know what? Maybe I want to go to church regularly again. And then And then maybe like you keep on walking down that path of maybe. And now, you know, I'm married. I 've got four kids and we go to church every Sunday. So again, it's it's this to to me the lesson of my life is fundamentally that grace is an imperfect process. Like I would constantly take two steps forward and then five steps backwards. It's it's uneven. But that's often the way that God makes it.
Jim Daly: Yeah. No, it's so good. And how how long have you been married now?
JD Vance: So we were married in 2014. So I guess uh just over 12 years now. And we've got four kids including a 3 month old, which is always fun.
Jim Daly: Yeah, that's great. You know what's what's so much fun, so many people say to me, it's awesome to see a vice president with young kids.
JD Vance: Yeah.
Jim Daly: And cuz we just don't see it that often anymore. People in politics, it's rare that they have young kids cuz they're typically older. So at least you're you're helping younger families say, okay, maybe we should have children. Let me ask you
JD Vance: Sure. Of course. Yeah. Yeah, and we we do try I mean, like obviously the balance of our lives is we want to try to protect the kids' privacy as much as possible. But we also just try to live in the world with them and try to show people that like, yeah, sometimes they're going to be misbehaved and sometimes they're going to get off of Air Force Two in their pajamas. But we we just try as as much as possible to like be parents in the world and show that it's possible. And that is something that that we try to do in our own personal way.
Jim Daly: Yeah. Right. Yeah. It's so funny, young parents or actually young couples that don't have kids yet. Jean and I did this. We'd go into Walmart, grocery shopping, and we'd see the mom with the out of control 5 year old going, when we have children, we will never be in that spot. And it's like God keeps a score book, right? And then you have kids and they're the out of control kid at the grocery store. So
JD Vance: Yes. Yeah, that's absolutely right. Yes, it happens to us all.
Jim Daly: Something you said that caught me just the other day actually. You mentioned, and I'm sure the media has run with this, about contemplating your next step, your future potential run as president. But
JD Vance: Sure. Yeah.
Jim Daly: hesitating it sounded like because you have to think about your wife and kids and the demands of the job. It is probably the most demanding job in the world. And you said you have these young children. You fill that in for me a little bit cuz I think it's so important for the listeners, other young men, professionals, and women too, saying, okay, do we need to pay that much attention to our children when we're looking at career opportunity?
JD Vance: Sure. Yeah. Sure. Yeah, and and the answer is is is of course you do, right? And I I think that the context for that answer is that everybody who I know is certainly everybody in the media presumes that I'm just going to run for president, right? I'm the vice president, the president's term limited, so that's what you're going to do. You're going to run for president. And I think the the honest answer is that yeah, I've given it some thought, but I just haven't thought that much about it. And it's not the sort of decision I' 'm going to make until I have to make it. And I was just trying to be honest about the fact that when when we do make that decision, the first and most important thing is going to be, can a campaign be consistent with the duties that I owe to my kids and into my family? And that is to the most important question. I think that if you're not thinking about those things, if you're the sort of person who would be willing to sacrifice your family in order for ambition, then you should never be president to begin with. So of course that's going to be the first question I ask.
Jim Daly: That is excellent. And I think you're right. Um so many professionals, we don't think of our kids. And we let them suffer for our advancement. And we're suffering the the cost of that.
JD Vance: But I I I think that's absolutely right. And look, nobody is ever sitting on their deathbed thinking, I wish that I had spent less time with my kids for that promotion, or I wish I had spent less time with my kids so that I would have, you know, a a few more dollars in the bank. I I really do There's this He's He's very much a critic of mine, but he he wants His name's David Brooks. But he once said something about resume virtues versus eulogy virtues. Like what is it that you want people to say at your funeral? And what does it say on your resume? And I just really strongly believe that most people ultimately are not going to care what was on their resume. They're going to care what other people say about them at their funeral.
Jim Daly: Yeah. Right. If they have wisdom, that is so true. Let me ask you with young kids. My boys are in their 20s. So I'm kind of through that part of it. But you know what?
JD Vance: Okay. You're in the different part.
Jim Daly: Right. Yeah. Small kids, small problems. Big kids, big problems.
JD Vance: Yeah. Somebody once told me that the the first 10 years kids are physically exhausting. The next 10 years kids are emotionally exhausting. And the 10 years after that they're financially exhausting. So you're in the financially exhausting part.
Jim Daly: Couldn't be true. Then you said it. The But in that context, you know, Focus on the Family, we are a resource center for parents, for marriage, etc. I'm really proud of the work we do to keep families together.
JD Vance: Of course. Yeah. You should be. I am too.
Jim Daly: But But in that context uh you know, the rise right now in social media issues, concerns about loneliness, depression, anxiety. I mean, CDC, 50% of 14 to 24 year olds now expressing some
JD Vance: Yes. Yeah.
Jim Daly: um level of anxiety or depression. Both, I guess, as a father and as a politician, what do you see as some remedy to help parents cope with this?
JD Vance: Well, I'm a big believer. And we we practice this in our own life that, you know, social media now our kids are still pretty young. Our oldest is nine. But that that we don't fully appreciate the effects of social media on kids. And I suspect that while there are benefits to any technology, the downsides of social media on kids is very very powerful. And I I do think that it's very easy to sort of self segregate and be atomized and lonely when you can just go on the internet and find somebody in some corner of the world, even if it's a bot who confirms what you think or what you believe.
Jim Daly: Right.
JD Vance: You know, I also believe I mean, I I'm I'm a fundamentally a a really strong believer that human beings God created us to be social creatures. And that interaction with one another, the disagreement sometimes, the conflict, the recognizing that I might think something, but that it runs against the reality of another person's thoughts or feelings is like fundamentally the way that we grow as human beings. And certainly that's that's been true in my marriage, but it's been true in any friendship that I' 've ever had. And one of the things I'm concerned about in in technology is, you know, when you go on a a chatbot or you You know, I have a friend of mine who's who knows somebody who actually used ChatGPT as a marriage counselor. Well, the problem with that is that's not a real human being. And so the feedback loop is, oh, you're right about this and your feelings are right about that and your feelings are right about that. And that's the way to turn yourself into just I think a fundamentally distorted uh person. So But I I do think that we probably need to do more and we need to go further as a society because there's something about this digital technology that I think does create atomized human beings. And I don't think we fully appreciate the effects yet.
Jim Daly: Right. Definitely the increase of loneliness, the most connected generation, the loneliest generation.
JD Vance: Exactly. It's also the loneliest generation.
Jim Daly: We're near the end here. And I I wanted to ask about your friendship with Charlie Kirk as well. Um I really appreciated the way he grew in the role that he had.
JD Vance: Yeah. Me too.
Jim Daly: I think some of the most compassionate answers he gave on campuses to people that were questioning their gender. I mean, loving and kind responses saying, get help for your mind. Find a way to love your body that God gave you.
JD Vance: Sure. Yes. Yeah.
Jim Daly: I thought that was brilliant. And um
JD Vance: It was brilliant.
Jim Daly: but he was your friend. And he was assassinated.
JD Vance: He was. He was.
Jim Daly: And you think about that, again the violence in this country, the direction it's going, that if you speak your mind peacefully
JD Vance: Mhm.
Jim Daly: on a college campus, you could end up being shot.
JD Vance: Sure.
Jim Daly: That's crazy.
JD Vance: It is crazy. And you know, the the basic and fundamental and most important thing that we can do as leaders is to call it out when we see it. And my view, whatever your politics, whether you voted for me or not, is that the way to win a debate in the United States of America is to put your ideas forward and try to win the argument. It is not to try to destroy the life of somebody because you disagree with them. That principle, the idea that we win arguments through open and free debate and not through violence is in some ways the foundational principle of our entire society. We don't force people to adopt our religion. We try to persuade them that Jesus is the son of God. We don't shoot somebody because they disagree with us. We try to persuade them that they should adopt our point of view. And at the very least, we vote against their candidates when they put them forward. That principle, by the way, I think is the most important I shouldn't say the most important, but it is an important Christian principle because if you understand your fellow man as made in the image of God, you don't murder them. You don't commit violence against them. You respect them enough to try to persuade them.
Jim Daly: You know, there's a number that's been floated that about 30 million Christians don't show up at the polls.
JD Vance: Yeah.
Jim Daly: That's a big number.
JD Vance: It's a big number.
Jim Daly: If we want to change the country, if we want to preserve those things that have made America a great place to live, the greatest place to live,
JD Vance: That's right.
Jim Daly: what would be your best pitch to say, don't hold back? I mean, now's the time to fight for our country. And the best way to do that is through the polls.
JD Vance: You know, I my my pitch and I my suspicion is that many of those 30 million Christians are people like my grandmother who were people of devout faith, but maybe felt like they just didn't have a political home. You know, maybe they agreed with the Democratic Party on this issue, but they agreed with the Republican Party on that issue, or maybe they just didn't think it mattered.
Jim Daly: Yeah.
JD Vance: And And what I would say to those Christians is the way to make it matter, but also the way to make our politics more like you is to participate in the process. And I I would love it I think that our our politics would be so much more humane. It would be so much more charitable, but it would also be much wiser if those 30 million Christians got involved. By the way, it would change things. It would meaningfully transform the way that both Democrats and Republicans interacted with the process. And that's a good thing. But you can't do that if you sit at home. And those 30 million Christians, that block,
Jim Daly: Yeah.
JD Vance: you take half of those people and make them a block of voters, American politics would never be the same. We would transform our country for the better. So get out there and vote. The country needs it. But I think most importantly, if you want America to be more like the faith that you know is true, the only way to do that is to get out there and vote.
Jim Daly: And that 30 million is on top of the the 60 million that do vote. So that's a big block. So
JD Vance: Yes. The big block.
Jim Daly: Mr. Vice President, thank you for being with us. This has been really great. And we'll pray for you and certainly President Trump and the administration and everyone in Congress, both Democrat and Republican.
JD Vance: Yeah. We appreciate that and you'll be in my prayers as well. God bless you guys.
John Fuller: Yeah, man. Thank you. Well, today on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly, it was great to hear a little bit about the vice president JD Vance, uh his life, his thoughts about things that families care about.
Jim Daly: Yeah, John, it was a great discussion like you said. And JD said it, we're not going to agree on every policy, issue, or platform. But as Americans, I hope we can do better at having civil dialogue with our friends and family on the issues that matter to us most while understanding that we're all created in the image of God. Start with a position of humility. Uh you know, we have an incredible privilege to vote and try to shape policy that lifts up traditional marriage and supports families while protecting preborn babies and defending religious freedom. So be sure and vote. Then remember to pray over the issues and for our leaders regardless of the letter behind their name or what office they're holding. It's just good to pray for everyone. So let's stay on our knees in prayer.
John Fuller: Mhm. Yes, absolutely. And of course, stay informed as well through the year by subscribing to our free e-newsletter called Daily Citizen. You can update uh every day, Monday through Friday, on issues from a Christian perspective. Uh the link is at focusonthefamily.com/broadcast. Also, if you can support the ministry with a gift, whether that's a one-time gift or a monthly gift, it really helps us to continue offering hope and encouragement to families, to marriages, saving preborn babies, and sharing the gospel. Millions of families are counting on us every day. And your gifts make it possible. So thank you for your support. Our number is 800, the letter A and the word family. We're stopped by focusonthefamily.com/broadcast. And thanks for joining us today for Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. I'm John Fuller, inviting you back next time as we once again help you and your family thrive in Christ.