“JD Vance is a fascinating figure in politics, particularly given how many times he’s reinvented himself,” Tara Setmayer, a political communications consultant and the chief executive of the Seneca Project, tells Michael Safi.

“I think there’s a certain amount of cynicism and performative politics when it comes to politicians, especially at that level. But JD Vance seems to bring that to a whole new level,” she says.

Setmayer left the Republican party in 2020, after Donald Trump refused to concede the election. She tells Michael how Vance went from calling himself a “Never Trump guy” to being picked as vice-president. They examine how Vance is using the role to lay the groundwork in order to inherit the Maga empire.

“When he started talking more about masculinity and traditional family values, you could see him leaning more into the Maga world’s worst instincts.”

But what does JD Vance really believe?

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