This weekend, The New York Times is revisiting the past of vice-presidential candidate JD Vance by releasing previously unseen anti-Trump texts and emails that Vance exchanged with a transgender classmate. In one of these messages, Vance described Trump as “a morally reprehensible human being.”
The publication shared a piece on Saturday that contained snippets of Vance’s correspondence with Sofia Nelson, a transgender individual, during their time as students at Yale Law School. These messages shed light on Vance’s earlier disdain for Trump, his frustrations with law enforcement, and his acceptance of his LGBTQ classmate.
“The emails contribute to a growing body of evidence illustrating Mr. Vance’s shift from a staunch critic of former President Donald J. Trump to his running mate. They also demonstrate Mr. Vance’s cultural willingness to accept his classmate, Sofia Nelson, who is transgender,” noted the article, which did not have a byline.
WHO IS TRUMP’S RUNNING MATE JD VANCE?
Former President Donald Trump and Republican Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance. (Getty Images)
The piece, attributed simply to “The New York Times,” stated that this collection of emails included correspondence between the two Yale students from 2014 to 2017. The article explained that the two maintained their friendship until 2021, when Vance publicly expressed his support for an Arkansas law that banned gender-affirming care for minors.
Nelson, now a public defender in Detroit, expressed to The Times a hope that the emails would influence voters’ perceptions of the GOP vice-presidential candidate.
The initial excerpt published by The Times was a screenshot from a 2014 email Vance sent to Nelson, which contained critical comments about police in the wake of Michael Brown’s death at the hands of a Ferguson, Missouri police officer.
The Times highlighted Vance’s statement, “I hate the police. Given the number of negative experiences I’ve had in the past few years, I can’t imagine what a black guy goes through.”
Next, the Times presented one of Vance’s anti-Trump remarks made to Nelson in 2015, after Nelson mentioned a Muslim friend who felt unsafe due to Trump’s rhetoric at the time.
Vance replied, “I’m obviously outraged at Trump’s rhetoric, and I worry most of all about how welcome Muslim citizens feel in their own country. But I also think that people have always believed crazy s—… And there have always been demagogues willing to exploit the people who believe crazy s—.”
The Times also included a screenshot of an email in which Vance apologized to Nelson for mistakenly referring to them as a lesbian in his bestselling book “Hillbilly Elegy.”
TRUMP RUNNING MATE JD VANCE: INSIDE HIS HOLLYWOOD CONNECTION
Former President Trump’s running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), has addressed his previous anti-Trump comments, admitting he was “wrong” about the former president. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
In response to this, Vance stated, “I hope you understand that the description was born from a place of ignorance when I began writing years ago. I hope you’re not offended, but if you are, I sincerely apologize!”
The piece then highlighted another anti-Trump email written by Vance that same year, in which he expressed, “The more white people feel inclined to vote for Trump, the more black people will suffer. I truly believe that.”
In a later email from that year, Vance remarked that Trump is “just a bad man. A morally reprehensible human being.”
When approached for comments regarding the article, a spokesperson for Vance remarked to Fox News Digital, “It’s unfortunate this individual opted to leak private conversations exchanged between friends from a decade ago.”
The spokesperson further added, “Senator Vance cherishes his relationships with individuals across the political landscape. He has been candid about how some of his views have evolved since becoming a father and starting a family, and he has thoroughly articulated the reasons behind his change of heart regarding President Trump. Despite their past disagreements, Senator Vance holds Sofia in high regard and wishes her nothing but the best.”
Vance has reflected on his earlier anti-Trump remarks previously. Last month, he told Fox News’ Bret Baier, “Look, I was wrong about Donald Trump. I didn’t believe he would make a good president, Bret. He was a great president. And that’s one reason I’m working tirelessly to ensure he secures a second term.”
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